In The World We Once Knew
by dreaming-beyond92
Summary: Lily Potter survived Lord Voldemort's attack in Godric's Hollow at the end of October, 1981. Where has she been for fourteen years? Who was involved in the cover up that framed her death; can a spark between two old friends be reignited; how will Harry react to her sudden appearance; what's going on at Hogwarts & The Order and where do the vampires/werewolves fit into this picture?
1. Bloodsuckers and Chaos

_A/N:_ Over the years I have read countless stories on this website of incredible quality and creativity, and I realised it would be an experience to write my own version of what I would've liked to happen; – had J.K. Rowling's world ever crossed over with Stephanie Meyers'. I thank both of these brilliant women for the two worlds they gave me during my childhood and adolescence. _Disclaimer:_ I do not own anything from their creations, besides the following plot.

This crossover picks up it's storyline near the beginning of _'New Moon'_ and towards the start of the school year in _'Goblet of Fire.'_

Also, for new readers: - just letting you know to pay close attention to the dates/timeline at the beginning of each chapter, as well as which character point-of-view the chapter is being told from. And for any old readers: - a vast number of adjustments have been made to existing chapters. xx

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**Chapter One – Bloodsuckers and Chaos**

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**_15 September 1994_**

**_Sam Uley POV_**

It was still annoyingly unclear to me; what exactly had happened earlier this evening. In all fairness, I wasn't that bothered by the details anyway. All I knew, was that the bloodsuckers had finally high-tailed it out of town. Though apparently they had left behind a devastated young admirer. I glanced down at the whimpering teenage girl I was carrying and tried to piece together, what may have happened to her, since their departure. The sheriff's daughter was curled up in my arms as I sped through the lush forest, back to the main street. I had spent the majority of today patrolling; my limbs were struggling from exhaustion and my eyes were straining in the darkness, also from tiredness. I found it hard to believe that this young girl had managed to trample out as far as she had, into these woods. From everything I had personally heard of her, she did not match the description or my expectations. Bella Swan came across as a fragile, careless and selfish individual. In my opinion, she should have been in a school with books and butterflies, rather than out fraternising with dangerous mythical creatures. I rolled my eyes at my own humorous thoughts. _How had bloodsuckers become such renowned beings anyway?_ Reflexively, I gagged; thinking of the modern day representations of Count Dracula and myths of crucifixes and holy water. Though in all seriousness, there were also popular myths about werewolves circling the modern world too. Chuckling to myself, I glanced down at the girl I was carrying and was pleased to see she had remained rather distant and quiet. I had had no intention of making conversation with her anyway. The quicker I returned her to the safety of her father, the faster I could remove myself from the chaos she had caused in Forks this evening. I was actually quite glad that I had had very little to do with Charlie Swan's daughter before today. Regardless of what Billy Black said; I could tell this girl was trouble. Honestly, _which sane teenage girl chose to have a vampire for a boyfriend:_ attention seeking brats or absolute morons.

"He's gone," she mumbled out miserably.

"I know Isabella; I'm sorry," I soothed calmly. I was anything but calm or sorry; I was ecstatic. The leeches had actually left town; meaning, I wouldn't have to spend half my time chasing around their pearly white butts or monitoring the damn treaty line. If I hadn't been running cross-country to deliver her safely home, I would've been doing cartwheels on the beach at La Push in celebration. _Who gave two pints of blood about her silly broken heart?_ I held in my laughter out of politeness and continued to leap over all the fallen branches and mossy logs. This girl was certainly heavier than she looked because my biceps were aching. I wondered whether the sheriff was continually feeding her donuts and burgers. The thought of delicious greasy food made my stomach rumble loudly, and I was even more desperate to reach the main street and get rid of the bundle in my arms.

"He left me," she whined, looking up desperately at me.

"Go back to sleep," I stated firmly, becoming bored of her mumble. Within minutes Bella had closed her eyes again and I huffed in frustration. My duty and responsibility to the tribe was nearly complete. I had already established that the girl wasn't hurt; she was merely cold and exhausted. Considering the alternative; that bloodsucker could have left her in a far worse condition this evening. She was safe, alive and physically unharmed; that was all that mattered, to me at least.

In no time at all, we emerged into the brightness of the street lights. It was easy to make out the deep babble of male voices. As I approached the clearing and the commotion up ahead, I slowed to a brisk walk, calling out before us;

"I've got her!" The chaotic babble ceased, and then picked up again with more intensity. Within seconds there were familiar faces and voices asking me multiple questions, hovering over her unconscious form, as I carried her towards the front door of her house. There was no doubt; she had managed to stir up quite a storm this evening and all because of a stupid pretty leech.

"No, I don't think she's hurt," I answered someone's question in the distance. "No, she hasn't said much," another person asked me. "She just keeps saying 'He's gone,' and drifting in and out of consciousness," I replied. "Where is the sheriff anyway?" I asked in frustration, wondering where the man was.

"Here, I'm here," Chief Swan shouted out, emerging from the house hurriedly, "Bella, honey, are you all right?" the young girl broke out of her unconscious state, recognising her father's frantic voice and nodded weakly in response. Charlie Swan placed his arms underneath his daughter and removed her from my hold, quite unsteadily too. I followed them into their house, my arm ready to catch the teenager; in case the sheriff couldn't handle her weight. He made it over to the couch and gently placed the young girl on it. Bustling around the living room, he gathered up a soft toy and purple woollen blanket to drape over her. I found this rather amusing; _the girl was eighteen, wasn't she?_ I shook my head and took a few steps to the far corner of the room. I sat down on one of the dining chairs quietly, wondering whether it was necessary for me to be in their house any longer. Within moments, I heard the trampling of feet from the floor above, as the captivating red head came rushing down the staircase and into the living room. She failed to notice me as she hurried over to the couch, evidentially worried about the teenager.

"Bella? Bells! Where have you been?" cried Lily dropping to the floor in front of the couch, and running her fingers through her young niece's damp hair. Bella seemed pleased by her aunt's presence, before she burst out crying in the older woman's arms. Chief Swan returned outside his house. I listened to him as he dismissed the remainder of his police unit who had helped out with the search that evening. Soon enough, the noisy thrum of engines could be heard disappearing down the street. I hated auto-mobiles; there was no need for them with my speed and agility. I tuned back in to a conversation Charlie was having outside with a colleague. They were discussing the resignation of the older bloodsucker from the hospital. I huffed in frustration, s_houldn't it be illegal for vampires to be qualified doctors;_ I mean, really, _how was it possible for him to be around exceeding amounts of blood all the time?_

"Thank you for finding her Sam," Lily spoke steadily, interrupting my thoughts. She was looking up at me from the floor, faint tear streaks running down her face. For a woman her age, she was beautiful. I was surprised she had even remembered my name.

"It's my job ma'am," I replied quickly, not looking at her face.

"No, you and the boys from La Push didn't need to do that for us," she answered back evenly, "you could've left it to the police, and for that I am grateful." I nodded at her in understanding, and looked away from the couch. She had spoken with an air about her, as if she was trying to convey something to me without really speaking it at all. I put it down to my paranoia and heightened senses, dismissing her words lightly. Lily went back to fussing over her niece and I pretended to be fascinated by a bunch of photos on their mantle piece. Gradually, the chit chat and commotion ceased entirely outside. I wondered whether any of my boys had remained in the vicinity. The sheriff came back inside his house and leant down over his daughter, to kiss her on the forehead.

"What did that boy do to you honey?" Charlie asked naively, triggering further sobbing and carrying on from her. "See, I told you Lils, he did hurt her!" Bella sobbed harder, shaking her head miserably. This bewildered the poor man even more. I watched in amusement as Chief Swan prodded his daughter for information and aggravated her terribly. If he only knew Bella had been dating a vampire. I quickly imagined the entertaining scene that would unfold; with the sheriff finding out about the vampires and werewolves in Forks. Yes, I was bored out of my brain and I didn't want to be in their house. Sometimes I wished I could ignore my tribal duties; the girl was safe, I should be able to go home now.

"I think I might take Bella upstairs to shower Charlie. Can you make her some hot chocolate in the mean time?" Lily instructed and guided the trembling girl up the staircase and into the main bathroom. Between Bella's insecurities and Charlie's naivety, it was good to see the older woman handling matters under this roof. The last thing we needed was the teenager becoming suicidal because of her new heartache. The second Lily had vanished upstairs, I smiled and stood happily. I figured this was my cue to leave the house; I was not hanging around to hear what the girl had to say, regardless of my responsibility to the pack. I shook the sheriff's hand firmly and told him to call me if he required any further assistance that evening. Charlie walked me out the front door, and waved me off as I made my way down the street.

I began to think over the events of the evening. Beginning with Billy's frantic call regarding Bella's disappearance, I continued my reflection, right up until Lily's bizarre thank you in the living room. Charlie and Lily Swan were an interesting duo. From my personal dealings with the two siblings, it was obvious the red head adored the Chief. Lily had been in Forks with Charlie for the past fourteen years. No one was really certain where she had been prior to that; quite frankly, no one had really been that curious anyway. I quickly thought back to a barbeque on the La Push reservation during my childhood, in which Charlie had brought his twenty-one year old sister to meet the tribe. I would've only been five or six years old at the time. Since then, I had seen Lily around on multiple occasions; parties, barbeques and even in town too while I was growing up. During my later teenage years I had secretly crushed on her; I was sure many of the males from La Push had at some point or another. Though overall, Lily Swan had mostly kept to herself over the past decade. Aside from her life with Charlie and her job at the local kindergarten in Forks, I was unsure what she actually did with her time. These past twelve months had kept her busy with Bella staying in town; though prior to that she was rarely seen.

Diverting my thoughts away from Lily once again, I turned around in the middle of the street and glanced back at their house. The front door had been locked shut for the night. I sighed tiredly; at least the silly girl was safe now. I continued walking down the street slowly. Unfortunately, my human senses were slow to pick up on the faint sugar sweet scent in the air. It was the quietness of the street that unsettled me. I glanced around cautiously, feeling uncertain. It took me a second to realise I was being watched; meaning, the sheriff's house was being watched too. The bloodsuckers had not left town after all. Feeling threatened and territorial, I phased into my wolf form right there in the middle of the street and trotted straight back to the front yard of the Swan residence. Pacing a full circle around their lawn to mark my territory, I gave a high pitched howl. It was a sound the average human ear couldn't hear; rather, it was meant to sting the leeches' eardrums for a few seconds. They could all clearly see that the property was guarded for the night. I was not moving a single paw. If those bloodsuckers tried anything foolish, there would be chaos.

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_A/N:_ It's my first fanfic, and I could really do with the feedback. Post up some of your comments on the storyline and the newly introduced characters. Also apologies in advance for the timeline of this story jumping all over the place. Hopefully it's not too confusing and you all appreciate the suspense. I'm hoping that this chapter was detailed enough as an introduction. Obviously you'll all be able to get a better grasp on characters, plots and sub-plots as the chapters move along. Thanks for viewing this chapter anyway, and lastly **p****lease review guys! **xx


	2. The Witch in Forks

_A/N:_ Over the years I have read countless stories on this website of incredible quality and creativity, and I realised it would be an experience to write my own version of what I would've liked to happen; – had J.K. Rowling's world ever crossed over with Stephanie Meyers'. I thank both of these brilliant women for the two worlds they gave me during my childhood and adolescence. _Disclaimer:_ I do not own anything from their creations, besides the following plot. xx

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**Chapter Two – The Witch in Forks**

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_**15 September 1994**_

_**Lily Potter POV**_

There was nothing but sheer relief flowing through my body as I sat quietly by the couch, stroking my niece's hair. The girl in front of me was reckless and insecure. I had known this from day one. I had witnessed her grow up over the years and spent summer after summer, giving her my undivided attention. Her insecurity was certainly not her fault either; living the lifestyle she had with her mother in Arizona, Bella had been emotionally neglected over the years. Her low self esteem had troubled me for over a decade and I had tried countless tactics to boost her confidence whilst she was visiting Charlie and I. Her stunt this evening had been just another one of her many emotional frenzies. My niece was not suicidal; this I knew for sure, though, I would without a doubt say she was highly strung. This breakup with her vampire boyfriend; Edward, was precisely what I had hoped to avoid.

It had taken me a matter of days to sense the magical presence here in Forks, after my arrival fourteen years ago. I was well aware of the local werewolf tribe out on the La Push reservation, as well as the vegetarian vampire coven living in the modern mansion on the banks of the Calawah River. My niece had been dating Edward for majority of the past year. Strangely, I had not been concerned by it. Regardless of their nature, I trusted all of them; there was something assuring about the type of people they were.

Bella's disappearance this afternoon had triggered absolute chaos and mayhem for the town of Forks. Charlie had summoned the help of his entire police unit, creating nothing but an unbearable racket. I really couldn't stand emergency sirens; and annoyingly enough, every cop on my brother's police team favoured them. When a girl didn't want to be found, no number of sirens was going to assist in her recovery. Knowing that her only hope of discovery was the werewolves, I quickly phoned my brother's closest friend; Billy, and informed him of Bella's disappearance.

Sitting by her side on the floor, I began to hush and soothe away all her sobbing. Charlie's insistent interrogating was driving me nuts as well. My brother had many a flaw, and tactlessness, was merely one of them.

"I think I might take Bella upstairs to shower Charlie. Can you make her some hot chocolate in the mean time?" I interrupted his steady stream of questions, pulling Bella off of the couch. I guided her to the staircase and turned around to smile at Sam sitting quietly behind us. We really did owe him and his pack for locating her. Leaving Bella in the main bathroom, I quickly rummaged through her wardrobe for some clean clothes and left them on her bed. By the time I returned downstairs, the werewolf had left my brother's house for the evening. I shuffled tiredly into the kitchen to join my brother.

"I can't believe that boy left her all alone in the woods like that," Charlie began yelling the moment I entered his cramped kitchen.

"You don't know that for sure Charlie," I replied calmly.

"Well it seems like the most logical explanation!" he protested in exasperation.

"Yes of course, because the considerate gentlemen we've seen around here this last year – _certainly_ abandoned your reckless, spontaneous daughter. Very good Charlie, that's quite logical indeed," I chastised my brother sarcastically.

"Bella isn't reckless," Charlie argued stubbornly and I rolled my eyes.

"Oh no, and you're not stubborn," sighing quickly, I removed the tea pot from his hands and began stirring cocoa powder into a mug for my niece.

"No. I'm not," mumbled Charlie gruffly, taking out a mug for himself, "Gimme' some of that stuff," he huffed as I smirked and poured him some hot water for his own hot chocolate. I truly adored my older brother. His stubbornness aside and all; I owed the past fourteen years of my life to Charlie. He had taken me in and embraced me as part of his own mundane life, when I had had no where else to go. I did also know that without me, Charlie would have probably done without a home-cooked meal for a good portion of the past fourteen years. I smiled to myself reminiscing over all the summer memories of little Bella, visiting Forks and playing dress-ups with me. Having Bella in town this past year had been an experience in itself; mythical creatures aside and all. I knew Charlie would not have coped with a hormonal teenage girl under his roof, had I not been here to manoeuvre him through all the mood swings.

"I'm going to take this up to Bella, and get her into bed," I finished stirring the cocoa powder and dropped the teaspoon into the sink for washing.

"No, bring her downstairs, I want a word with her," Charlie snapped and I raised my eyebrow in frustration. How could he not understand, that now was not the time to confront Bella? Cleverly, I picked up the hands-free telephone from the kitchen bench top and tossed it over to my brother.

"Here, have a word with Billy instead," I turned my back on him, "You can speak with Bella in the morning, she needs to rest now." With that I trudged up the staircase, cocoa in hand, leaving Charlie grumbling on the phone to his best friend.

"Tink?" I called out quietly, "Tinkerbella, where – are – you?" I said in my childish sing-song way, peeping into my niece's bedroom. I smiled as I heard Bella's quiet chuckle from her walk-in wardrobe. I walked into the girl's dimly lit sanctuary and handed her the hot chocolate.

"I'm a little old for hide and seek Aunt Lils," Bella hiccuped taking her first sip of the warm drink, wiping her eyes from all the crying.

"Never!" I mocked lightly. Reaching over to the pile of clothes on the floor, I continued hanging up Bella's clothes in the wardrobe, while the young girl crawled into her bed. Sometimes I really missed magic; a flick of my wand could have had the entire pile hanging in the wardrobe neatly.

"You make the best hot chocolate, have I said that before?" Bella smiled gratefully at me.

"You have," I smiled back at her and walked over to shut the lilac curtains in her room. The closer I got to the window, the more my fingertips began to tingle. This was usually the signal I would get, alerting me to the presence of a magical creature or being. Obviously there was a vampire or werewolf somewhere outside the house. I rolled my eyes, irritated by the fact that they were simply everywhere. I tugged on the draw string, and shut the curtains to the small room. Within seconds the tingling in my fingers ceased.

"This would taste a lot better with marshmallows though," Bella commented cheekily and I smiled happily at her, noticing the change in her mood.

"Well then, you tell your father to stock up on marshmallows when he does his next grocery shop," I retorted back, walking over to kiss Bella goodnight on the forehead.

"Aunt Lils, how long did it take you to stop missing James?" she asked me quietly and I smiled sympathetically at the girl.

"Sometimes, the healthiest thing for you – is to forget you ever knew him," I replied earnestly.

"That's what he said to me before he left; 'It will be as if I'd never existed,' and naturally Edward thought to remove every trace of himself from my room," she cried miserably. I glanced quickly around the small room, visualising the young male dashing around it, hastily picking up sentimental bits and pieces and jumping out the window again.

"Surely Edward could not be so heartless," I raised my eyebrow at Bella.

"No that's just Edward being thoughtful and considerate," she whined back earnestly.

"I doubt it very much Tink; besides, how could he have got into your room anyway?" I asked rhetorically, receiving a mere shrug of the shoulders in response. My knowledge of the vampires and werewolves had been quite helpful over the years. I generally knew when to prevent Charlie from going on a fishing trip or to cancel a kindergarten excursion or picnic due to a vampire threat in the area. Though, this last year had been hard for me with Bella staying in Forks. Not being able to tell her, I knew of Edward's true nature was painful. I had concealed my knowledge of the vampires and werewolves for years. Yet somehow, these last few months specifically, had been ridiculously unbearable.

I walked to her room door, and turned off the bedroom light switch.

"He'll come back for me, I know he will," Bella commented dismally, barely trying to sound convincing.

"I'm sure he will Bells," I smiled. Though I was certain, the town of Forks would be much better off without the coven of vampires.

"Maybe when I wake up tomorrow morning, this will have just been a bad dream," Bella wished unrealistically.

"Would you like me to stay over tonight, or just come back tomorrow morning?" I whispered across the room, concerned about the young girl's sanity.

"Whatever is comfortable for you," said Bella, turning over under her quilt, "Tell Charlie I'm sorry for worrying him."

Standing in her bedroom doorway, I wasn't sure whether to bring a chair upstairs and sit outside her room all night or leave for the evening. I had to admit, the bond between Edward and Bella had been unique. I just hoped with time, she would be able to move on from the heartache and longing. I frowned unhappily; it had taken me years to move on after my late husband; James' death. And strangely enough, the connection between the mind-reading vampire and my niece had seemed to be far deeper than any connection I had ever witnessed before. Then again, falling in love with a vampire was a once in a lifetime occurrence. Just as falling out of love with one was a rarity. Knowing there was not much else I could do for her this evening, I decided to head home for the night.

"Goodnight Charlie," I called to my brother as I stepped off the staircase and picked up my keys from the mantle piece in the living room. Still on the phone to Billy, Charlie waved goodbye as I closed his front door behind me and walked out onto the street. The chilly air hit my face immediately and made my nose and fingertips tingle. I shivered quickly; taking a few steps away from the house. I realised the sensation in my fingers was not because of the cold. I was not alone.

I waited a few more seconds for the uneasiness to wash through me, which usually came whenever there was a threatening or unfamiliar magical presence nearby. Assured that the feeling had not filled me, I took a few deep breaths. Whatever it was; vampire or werewolf, it was someone I knew personally. Gathering up a little of my dormant Gryffindor courage, I peeked around the side of Charlie's house. Standing there beneath the tree outside Bella's window, was a great black wolf. I was nothing short of terrified. I whipped my head back around the side of the house, out of his view. The wolf was Sam; he obviously hadn't returned home this evening. It was the first time I had ever seen one of the La Push werewolves in animal form and he was truly a sight to be seen. Just maybe not in the middle of the night and especially not while I was entirely alone. Closing my eyes for a few seconds, I took another few deep breaths. This was Sam; I had nothing to fear. I knew for a fact, that a werewolf's temperament was the exact same as his human personality traits. Sam was a level headed, composed young man. I decided this was an opportunistic chance for me to speak to him, as I had wanted to for a while. I took the most courageous step I had taken in a few years, and cleared my throat. The wolf snapped his head up sensing my presence; I was in full view of him.

"You know, eavesdropping isn't the most polite thing Sam," I called out to him, using all my will power to remain calm and composed. I suppressed the shiver that was threatening to run down my body, and levelled out my breathing. It was necessary that he knew I was not scared or fazed to see a werewolf in my brother's backyard. "I suggest you change back into your human form so we can have a chat," I stated firmly.

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_A/N: _So what did you all think of _Chapter Two_? Are any of you fans of Charlie and Lily as siblings? Do you think Edward will come back to Bella in this fanfic? And lastly, how do you think Sam will respond to Lily's confrontation? Also, I should mention that I am about to begin introducing new characters now, and quite a few new POV's, so shoot me through a personal message if you're getting lost or unsure with the plot. Oh and again, **please review guys!** xx


	3. The Hogwarts Champions

_A/N:_ Over the years I have read countless stories on this website of incredible quality and creativity, and I realised it would be an experience to write my own version of what I would've liked to happen; – had J.K. Rowling's world ever crossed over with Stephanie Meyers'. I thank both of these brilliant women for the two worlds they gave me during my childhood and adolescence. _Disclaimer:_ I do not own anything from their creations, besides the following plot. xx

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**Chapter Three – The Hogwarts Champions**

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_**_**31 October 1994**_**_

_**Severus Snape POV**_

Standing in the entrance foyer with the Headmaster, watching these three idiots, may have just been the highlight of my miserable day. Regardless of how much I despised the two red-headed twins, I knew they were gifted. Lee Jordan on the other hand, followed them around as if his life depended on it.

_"We're going to split the thousand Galleons between the three of us if one of us wins,"_ the dark skinned boy commented to the rest of the Great Hall proudly. I glanced sideways at the Headmaster to gauge his thoughts.

"They don't really have that little faith in my magic, do they Severus?" Professor Dumbledore whispered to me, as we stood in the shadows surveying the commotion in the Great Hall. Students from all years at Hogwarts had gathered in the Hall that morning to take a closer look at the Goblet of Fire. Others had woken up early to glimpse which of their fellow students were daring enough, to enter their names in the Tournament.

"I think," I began, then smirked as Dumbledore glanced sideways at my brief pause, "that, they have a misguided faith in their own capabilities Headmaster," I offered flatly. Any student at Hogwarts was either stupid or naive to question the old man's methods or skill with the magical art.

_"I'm not sure this is going to work, you know,"_ said Hermione cautiously. _"I'm sure Dumbledore will have thought of this."_ I glanced across at the Headmaster again and noticed the triumphant grin on his face.

"Very bright girl, that Granger is," Dumbledore nodded quietly in approval. I rolled my eyes at my ageing companion. It was about time I found a better source of entertainment and comfort. Surely my own sanity was at risk, given the amount of time I was spending with this man. Serving as his Potions Master for the past fourteen years had driven me up the wall and back. It felt like this whole damn school was a nut-house at times; its Headmaster, the biggest fruitloop of them all.

"Unlike her two minions," I indicated towards Potter and Weasley, who were sitting on the benches, either side of Granger within the Great Hall. They were both clapping their hands aimlessly in front of them like idiotic sea lions, cheering on the twins.

"One day Severus, you will owe your existence to Harry; and when that day comes, you will regret ever belittling him," Dumbledore chastised me lightly. I had learnt over the years to merely ignore his words of wisdom and spare myself the time trying to piece his advice together.

"What will happen to them once they cross that line?" I raised my eyebrow curiously as the Weasley twins took a sip of their Ageing Potion and the Hall broke into applause.

"They will have to join Miss Fawcett from Ravenclaw and Mr Summers of Hufflepuff in the Hospital Wing." Dumbledore's eyes twinkled as he twirled his white beard between his thumb and pointer finger. I watched the old man in front of me quite incredulously. It took me another second or so, to imagine the two twins with long white beards sprouting from their chins. Dumbledore never ceased to amaze me. "Is that a smile I see on your face Severus?" he asked in amusement and I quickly relaxed my facial muscles.

"You're seeing things old man," and with that, I turned on my heel and sped off across the entrance foyer. "I expect to see this later tonight!" I called back at the Headmaster and heard his faint chuckle behind me. I knew Dumbledore would let me view his memory in the Pensieve, if I bothered him for it. "Move out of my way!" I barked at a handful of third year girls, giggling in the corridor. They squealed hurriedly and parted to either side of the walkway as I billowed past them. I really did enjoy doing that. Smirking to myself, I descended to the Slytherin dungeons and ran into Draco Malfoy.

"Good morning sir," he buttered up to me, as was expected of him.

"Malfoy, you have class in ten minutes…" I snarled effectively and he scrambled out of my way, followed by Parkinson and Zabini. On most occasions I wouldn't bother with the Malfoy boy. I did not possess the time or the patience to deal with the usual blood status crap that his father; Lucius, placed such emphasis on. Though, given that I had a reputation to uphold among the Malfoy's social circle, I did seldom make the effort to praise Draco during his classes. Blaise Zabini on the other hand, was one of the few Slytherin males whom I personally found quite pleasant. He was intelligent, witty, composed and reserved where he ought to be. _Why couldn't every young Slytherin male obtain those qualities?_ My House would have earned a great deal more house points, if some of them had held their tongues and kept their arrogance in check.

There was no reason for me to slam my classroom door behind me, though I did anyway. The loud echo reverberated off the deep dungeon walls scaring the cornish pixies in their cages. I never found out why Dumbledore had wanted me to keep those pesky creatures down in the potions classroom after Lockhart had left the school. I pointed my wand at the noisy cage and froze all the pixies immediately, before cursing out loud in frustration.

"Goodness, someone woke up on the wrong side of their four-poster this morning," I spun around in shock and found Pomona Sprout rummaging around the back of my potions cupboard. She glanced up and down at me and went back to fiddling with my supplies. "You ought to try a mild sleeping draught Professor."

"May I ask what you are doing in my supply cabinet..._again_?" I queried in frustration.

"Oh Professor, I thought Minerva told you I was brewing a new potion for Madam Pomfrey, to heal severe burns and lacerations," the woman chirped on. I waved my hand dismissively and exited the classroom, into my adjoining office. Compared to some of the other school professors, Pomona Sprout was quite tolerable. She stayed out of people's way and minded her own business. I liked that about her. What I didn't like, was the fact that she always left my cabinets untidy and out of order, when she came looking for supplies. Sometimes I wished Poppy Pomfrey would just come to me for help with medicinal potion brewing. I would get it done in half the time too.

After shutting my office door quietly, I sat down and reclined back in my desk chair. It had been an awfully long morning. Tonight was going to be worse with the school feast and the selection of the Tournament Champions. I quickly thought back over the morning and remembered noticing Hagrid hanging numerous pumpkins around the school staircases and entrance foyer for the Hallowe'en Feast this evening. Up until last year, I had hated the feast of Hallowe'en. It was not a day in my yearly calendar, which I particularly wanted to celebrate or remember. This year however, I hoped the evening would be decent. I had generally never been in the mood for the feast or festivities during previous Hallowe'en's at Hogwarts.

Living in a house with a Muggle father who despised magic; the fun tradition of dressing up and remembering the dead, eventually became the opportunistic chance for him to make a mockery of the magical world. Prior to my years as a student at Hogwarts, I had lived out on Spinner's End with my parents. Each year I had watched my father beat my mother with a handful of cooking utensils, screaming at her to cook with them instead of using her wand for everything. He would then grab an old dirty bed sheet from the linen closet with two small holes cut in it, and throw the cloth over my head and push me outside our front door. I would be made to stand outside on our narrow foot-path in the cold wind, with a filthy bed sheet draped over me, watching all the other children in the neighbourhood, skip around from house to house trick-or-treating. None of the kids would ever approach our small terraced property, probably because their parents had warned them to stay away from us. In actual fact, they were all the same kids who threw stones and eggs at our house, every other month of the year. There was not one child in the neighbourhood I could name, who hadn't laughed, stared, pointed or thrown something at our house over the years. Not one; except for the two Evans girls.

I recalled one particular Hallowe'en evening, in which my father had shoved me outside the front door with the sheet draped over my head. Lily and her older sister had been visiting a nearby house collecting sweets. The moment she caught sight of me she had sprinted over in her fairy costume carrying her basket of treats. After giving me a quick hug, she grabbed my wrist and placed a handful of her sweets in my palm. She then told me I looked rather silly under the old bed sheet and that she would see me the following day in the park. That had been the first time Lily Evans had ever hugged me. After she had run back to her sister, my father had pulled me inside and asked me who my little girlfriend was. I denied that Lily meant anything to me and had received four whacks across my face for lying to him. Luckily for me, the following year I had started my schooling at Hogwarts and I hadn't had to endure Hallowe'en with my father on Spinner's End. As first years, Lily and I had spent that first Hallowe'en together, watching the pumpkins being carved for the feast later that night. We had skipped across the school grounds hand-in-hand during lunch time before James Potter and his friends had approached us and started to…

"Did you hear me?" Professor Sprout barged into my office interrupting my thoughts. She looked like she had seen a ghost.

"Excuse me?" I snapped out of my daze and sat up straight.

"Are you coming down to the Feast or not? We're already late!" she had bustled out of my office before I had had the chance to check my clock for the time. Realising we had barely a minute to spare, we both bolted out of the dungeons and up to the decorated Hall. Slipping in behind the staff table, we sat down as the Great Hall doors opened to let in the Beauxbatons and Durmstrang guests.

"Wouldn' min' takin' one o' those home," Mad-Eye mumbled happily, indicating towards some of the young ladies entering the Hall from the Beauxbatons Academy. I pretended not to hear his comment as I caught sight of Igor Karkaroff approaching the staff table with Olympe Maxime. Glancing beside me, I realised one of the two remaining seats available at the High Table was next to me. I cursed to myself, praying to Merlin it was the gigantic Headmistress that took the seat beside me, rather than the former Death-Eater. It seemed my luck was in order this evening, as I stood up respectfully and kissed the giant's outstretched forehand, before she sat down between Dumbledore and I.

The Feast was a spectacle as always; overflowing dishes of food, unbearable noise, floating ghosts, wine goblets spilling over and unnecessary conversations along the staff table. The entire meal was horrendous; I just wanted to go to bed. I waited patiently for my fellow staff members to consume every last spoonful of their pudding or pumpkin pie. Judging by the constantly craning necks in front of me, the impatient expressions on every face and the standing up to see whether Dumbledore had finished eating; every student in the hall was also eager to hear who the Champions were and for the Feast to end. Finally the Hogwarts Headmaster rose to his feet and announced to the mass of students, that the Goblet was almost ready to make its decision. Waving his wand in a sweeping motion across the Hall, every candle was extinguished, leaving only a few lit within some of the carved pumpkins. I had to admit, the dark and gloomy effect was quite chilling; I shivered subtly as the goose bumps began forming on my skin. Dumbledore made his way towards the large magnificent chalice standing in front of the staff High Table. The Goblet of Fire now shone more brightly than anything in the whole Hall, the sparkling bright, bluey-whiteness of the flames almost painful on the eyes. Without warning, the flames in the Goblet suddenly turned red and sparks began to fly into the air. A tongue of flame shot into the air, followed by a charred piece of parchment – which Dumbledore caught lightly.

"The Champion for Durmstrang," he read, in a strong, clear voice, "will be Viktor Krum." The Hall erupted in applause as Krum stood from his seat at the Slytherin table and made his way across the floor, into the next chamber. After another few seconds the flames in the Goblet turned red again and Dumbledore announced the following champions to be Fleur Delacour from Beauxbatons and Cedric Diggory from Hogwarts. I had never liked that kid much; I had always considered him far too arrogant for a Hufflepuff. He reminded me of James Potter.

Dumbledore waited patiently for Diggory to exit the Hall into the side chamber, before he continued to address the congregation of excited students. He babbled on about the three tasks the Champions would have to compete and roughly which dates during the year they would occur. He encouraged the students before him, to participate in the Tournament through cheering and promoting school spirit. But as he continued to speak, the attention within the Hall began to shift quickly to the lonesome Goblet, standing out of the way. The flames emerging from its opening had turned red again. Dumbledore too, had noticed this and abandoned his speech. He made his way over to the large chalice just as it shot out a bright tongue of flame, followed by another charred piece of parchment. We all watched on in a terrifying silence as the Headmaster unfolded the piece of paper and stared at it for a few moments.

"Harry Potter," he called out. My heart began to race as I realised what had just happened. I watched in horror as Lily and James Potter's son trampled reluctantly up towards the staff table and exited into the side chamber. I tore my gaze away from the side door he had exited through, and locked eyes with Dumbledore. In his eyes I saw the same terror that was reflected deep down within me. I absolutely _hated_ Hallowe'en.

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_A/N:_ So that was _Chapter Three_ and it was also the introduction of Severus Snape, Hogwarts and the wizarding world. What are all of you thinking? Any questions or queries about the characters or plot, leave a comment or inbox me ! I'm dying to hear what you all think; again it's my first fanfic, and I could really do with the feedback. **Please review guys!** xx


	4. Christmas Without the Tree

_A/N:_ This is what I would have liked to happen; – had J.K. Rowling's world ever crossed over with Stephanie Meyers'.

_Disclaimer:_ I do not own anything from their creations, besides the following plot. xx

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**Chapter Four – Christmas Without the Tree**

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**_**_25 December 1994_**_**

**_Jacob Black POV_**

As Dad and I made our way up to Charlie's front door on Christmas Day, we weren't entirely sure what to expect. These past three months had been a struggle for the Sheriff and Lily, dealing with Bella's mild depression. After the bloodsuckers left town in September, Bella had turned into a lifeless robot; waking up, going to school, working at the Newton's store, coming home and sleeping. I recalled some of the countless conversations between my dad and Charlie on the phone, in which the sheriff had complained and worried over his daughter's lack of interest in life. Bella's aunty; Lily, along with Charlie had tried desperately to get her back on her feet. They encouraged her to socialise more, pick up a hobby or even begin her ballet classes again. Though nothing had seemed to work, she obviously just wasn't interested. At some point in November, Charlie had threatened to send Bella back to her mother's care in Phoenix to knock some enthusiasm and life into her. It had been Lily and Dad who convinced him otherwise, claiming she needed some time and space to get over the breakup. Dad then suggested she come out to La Push to spend time with me and some of the tribe boys. I'm not too sure what it was about being on the reservation that had helped her, but over the last few weeks this December, Bella seemed to come out of her shell. Dad said Charlie and Lily were thrilled that she was smiling more and actually getting out of bed happily most mornings. Spending time with Bella these last few weeks certainly made me smile a lot more too. As much as she hadn't been the most talkative or cheery company, being around her had made me feel good. Which is why I was thrilled when Lily and Charlie invited us over for their Christmas feast.

As we approached the small house around midday, we could hear some confusion coming from inside the walls. I thought it may have just been my heightened hearing, picking up the buzz from within the house. So I looked over at Dad, but he could hear Lily's shouting as well. We both chuckled to ourselves feeling sorry for Charlie; knowing full well, that she was the best thing in his life.

"He's lucky to have her," Billy remarked cheerfully.

"They both are," I added in agreement, thinking that Bella probably would've taken longer than three months to emerge from her cocoon, had it not been for Lily. I jogged up the steps to the door and happily rang the door bell. Within seconds Bella had rushed to the door and yanked it open enthusiastically. The first thing I noticed was the short red dress that she was wearing.

"Hey Jake," she threw her arms around me merrily "Happy Christmas!" it took me a few seconds to pull myself together and return her hug. I liked the dress; that was for sure.

"You too Bells, Happy Christmas!" I smiled warmly, releasing her waist and turning around to wheel my dad into the house.

"Happy Christmas Billy," Bella bent over and kissed my dad on the cheek, before I pushed his wheelchair into the living room of their house. There were bright Christmas lights flashing all around the ceiling of the living room, and a vast pile of gifts stacked up in the corner. Lily had displayed all their Christmas cards around the room, as well as put out various festive ornaments and Christmas statues. The room looked rather incredible and quite welcoming too. I could hear soft Christmas carols playing somewhere in the background and could smell the strawberry, cherry and mint scented wax from all the candles burning around the room. Dad and I looked at each other, both impressed with the effort Lily had put in to the place. But we were also both thinking, our place had not looked as incredible since Rachel and Rebecca had left home. It was nice to see that some homes actually made the effort. It took me about thirty seconds to realise that they didn't have a tree anywhere in sight.

"Hey Bells, where's your…"

"Get out of here for the seventh time," we all glanced up to see Lily waving an empty frying pan in the air at Charlie's head, before catching sight of us, "Oh, hi Billy, Jacob!" she lowered her copper weapon and smiled embarrassedly.

"Hi Sheriff, Happy Christmas." I shook Charlie's hand, and then wished Lily on the cheek. I watched on as everyone else exchanged festive greetings and embraces, before we all sat down around the living room, leaving Lily to return to the kitchen to finish preparing the meal. The four of us began discussing some of the latest happenings out on our reservation with the tribe. Charlie, Lily and Bella weren't aware of our werewolf ancestry, but they knew La Push had its own tribe of Native American boys and that we took our community life very seriously. As we all began to laugh over some of the funnier moments from the year that had just gone by, I started watching Bella. I liked the way she smiled and laughed along with everyone; it seemed genuine too, which was a good sign for her. Charlie and Dad started telling us a story about one of their fishing trips, in which Harry Clearwater's fishing line had gotten hooked on the back of Charlie's t-shirt and he had danced around trying to get it off of himself. Bella cracked up laughing hysterically at her dad, and I could tell Charlie was pleased to see it. It really must have been a long time since he had actually seen her laugh like that. Within no time at all, Dad struck up a conversation about the latest baseball scores. Bella and I glanced sideways at each other knowingly, and we promptly removed ourselves from the living room. We smiled and rolled our eyes at each other as we made our way to the staircase. I followed Bella up to her bedroom, trying desperately not to stare at her long legs as she walked in front of me.

"I got you a Christmas gift," she punched me lightly on the arm, tearing me away from my imaginative thoughts. I really had to stop fantasising about her, it was just Bella! I shook my head to myself and grinned back at her charmingly.

"Oh really; a new bike perhaps?" I teased her lightly

'"You wish, kiddo," she scoffed as we entered her room. It was the first time I had been invited in there, and I was rather surprised to find it completely covered in purple, mauves and lilacs. For the scruffy tom-boy that Bella was, I was expecting a less girly finish to her room. Either way I was glad she finally trusted me enough to allow me in there. Bella walked over to her bedside table and pulled out a small black leather pouch from the drawer.

"You really shouldn't have," I said sincerely as she handed the small pouch to me and sat down on her bed.

"I hope you like it," she replied. I smiled warmly at her and thanked her for the gift before sitting down on the bed next to her and opening the pouch. From inside, I pulled out a black braided leather bracelet, with a sun pendant tied in the centre of the knot. The leather bracelet itself was quite neat, and I knew the significance behind the sun pendant too.

"I love it Bells, thank you," I gazed fondly at her for a few seconds, before dropping a tender kiss on her cheek. Bella's cheeks quickly reddened and she smiled shyly. "That was very sweet of you," I added,

"I'm just glad you like it," she said dismissively, obviously embarrassed by something or another.

"Help me?" I handed the bracelet to Bella, and she tied it firmly around my wrist.

"How are Quil and Embry?" Bella enquired after two of my friends from the reservation and I happily filled her in, on some of the funny stories they had been involved with. It was half an hour later that Lily interrupted our giggling and called us downstairs, to set the table for the meal. Before leaving Bella's room, I slid my hand into hers but she moved her hand away within moments. I figured it was probably too early to be affectionate with her, even with my friendly intentions. I smiled easily at her, to reassure her that it was perfectly okay to not want to hold my hand and she too smiled back easily. I wasn't even sure myself, why I had reached out for her fingers in the first place.

"Everything okay Jake?" Lily asked me, as we stepped off the bottom of the staircase together.

"Sure," I replied breaking into another easy smile, as Bella too glanced up at me and frowned. I punched her lightly on the shoulder and made my way into the Sheriff's small kitchen to start bringing out some of Lily's aromatic dishes. Naturally my tummy rumbled loudly, triggering laughs from both Lily and Bella. I rolled my eyes and returned to the living room carrying two hot dishes in my hands. After another five minutes or so, I wheeled Dad over to the dining table and Charlie and the rest of us sat down to the delicious meal. Lily chatted about her job teaching at the local kindergarten, and told us stories of the young kids there and the silly things they would do in their naivety and innocence. Charlie then began telling us similar tales from when Bella was younger, which began a series of protests from Bella. Of course, Dad had to join in and include stories of myself.

"Billy don't go embarrassing the boy like that," Charlie stood up for me. Lily and Bella merely looked at each other incrediously, as he had been doing the same thing to Bella seconds earlier.

"…he couldn't even talk properly, his mouth was so full of Sue's chocolate cake," Dad laughed and I rolled my eyes at Bella.

"That sounds like Bells, when she tucks into Lil's tiramisu,' Charlie added.

"Hey that stuff's good alright," Bella defended herself, before the conversation continued on. Dad asked Bella how her mother was doing in Phoenix and whether she was sad not spending Christmas with her. Bella had replied saying that her mother; Renee, was not exactly the most festive person and that the Christmas season was never a big thing for them. She then went on to say she was rather pleased to be celebrating with Lily and Charlie that year, as well as Dad and myself. She had looked up fondly at me when she had said that. I smiled back happily and then helped myself to some more of Lily's seafood platter.

Later that afternoon, Bella and I were called downstairs into the living room again, to exchange gifts with everyone. I was pretty excited that year, to receive gifts from Lily and Charlie too. Everyone likes presents, even us big kids! Charlie put on his Santa hat and sat down on the floor near the pile of stacked gifts.

"Hey Bells, how come you guys don't have a Christmas tree?" I asked curiously, remembering from earlier.

"I don't like trees," she announced casually and went about helping her dad sort through some of the gifts in the pile. Lily, Charlie and my dad all looked at each other and raised their eyebrows at Bella's light response. I was clearly missing something, but decided to just ask my dad about it later that evening. Everyone took a seat on one of the couches and waited patiently for Chief Swan to begin distributing the presents. Bella was the first to receive two gifts from Lily and Charlie and she eagerly opened them on the couch. Dad got handed a book on the history of baseball from Lily and then Lily received an elegant handbag from Charlie.

"Jake!" the sheriff called my name out and handed me a large wrapped box from the pile. I thanked him happily and ripped open the paper, to find a box of new hiking boots from Lily. I was thoroughly surprised because they were exactly what I had wanted, but I knew they were expensive too. I jumped off the couch and engulfed Bella's aunt in an affectionate hug.

"Thanks a bunch Lils," I kissed her on the cheek and she ruffled my hair happily. Before I knew it, Charlie had called my name again and I opened a small box with expensive cologne in it, from the sheriff. I went over and shook his hand and thanked him graciously. Within minutes I had also received new pyjamas, socks, an iPod and new speakers from Dad. I was absolutely thrilled. I glanced over at Bella and saw that she and Lily were happily chatting about some cosmetics Lily had bought for her. I heard Charlie call out her name, and he placed my gift for her, in her hands.

"It's from Jake," Charlie said casually and then proceeded to give Lily her next gift. I pretended not to be paying any attention to Bella as she quickly glanced at me and opened my carefully wrapped package. From inside she pulled out the intricately designed 'dream catcher' with tiny stones around its edges. The next thing I knew, a tearful Bella had plummeted herself into my chest and all I could manage to do was hold her. I was glad she liked the gift, but it was rather awkward to have Charlie, Lily and Dad smiling fondly at the two of us, the way they were.

"Glad you like it Bells," I squeezed her affectionately and she hiccuped happily.

"I love it Jake," she smiled at me and at the same time we went to kiss each other on the cheek quickly. Sort of how you would wish your sister, I thought to myself. Charlie then caught my attention and asked me to help him lift a gift for my dad. Together we picked up the large heavy box and placed it on the floor in front of Dad. Delighted with the large present, he eagerly bent down to open it, chuckling to himself. Charlie announced that it was from Lily, Bella and himself. Dad burst out laughing when he saw what it was.

"You shouldn't have guys," he cried showing us all his new lawn mower; I moaned unhappily knowing I would be the one having to use it.

"No more excuses for overgrown lawn Jake," Dad raised his eyebrow at me and I made a mental note to strangle the Sheriff and Lily for their generosity.

"Yeah thanks guys," I went over and wished Lily and Charlie a second time for Dad.

"Bells this one is for you," Charlie handed her a small box, which was a gift from my dad apparently. I watched her open it curiously and was stunned when she pulled out an expensive silver bracelet from the velvet box.

"Oh wow Tink, that's beautiful," Lily and Bella gushed over the gorgeous piece as I locked eyes with my dad. I raised an eyebrow at him questioning why he had given Bella my mother's favourite bracelet. Dad smiled at me genuinely, and I knew he was trying to convey to me the fact that Bella had become just as special to the two of us as that bracelet had been, maybe even more. Charlie too had recognised the piece instantly and shook hands with Dad, a mere tear falling from his eye.

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A/N: Apologies for the massive time jump between September and Christmas, in Forks. I really didn't want to dive into lengthy or bitter chapters surrounding Bella's depression after the Cullen's departure. So I hope this festive chapter was a good place to pick up the Forks storyline. On a different note; how did you guys feel about the introduction of Jake as a new character POV? Yes ? No? Anyway, I know it is taking a while to get into the main plot of this fic, but please forgive me for my lengthy set up - the plot will begin to twist soon enough! Also, again it's my first fanfic, and I could really do with the feedback; on the storyline and on my writing style too, so **please review guys.** xx


	5. A Promise, Is a Promise Lils

_A/N:_ This is what I would have liked to happen; – had J.K. Rowling's world ever crossed over with Stephanie Meyers'.

Disclaimer: I do not own anything from their creations, besides the following plot. xx

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**Chapter Five – A Promise, Is a Promise Lils**

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**_25 December 1994_**

**_Lily Potter POV_**

Thinking back over this past month, there was no way I could have imagined all of us sharing such a joyful Christmas holiday together. Much had changed these recent weeks, and I was certainly grateful. I walked over to Charlie's kitchen sink, and pulled on a pair of rubber gloves. Sighing to myself, I quickly contemplated the ridiculous pile of dirty dishes laid out on the bench top. For a kitchen as cramped as it was, I was thoroughly impressed I had managed to cook a decent sized Christmas meal, with the available utensils and appliances. I made a mental note to myself, that I would rethink purchasing Charlie, a new oven for his birthday in a few months; as the one currently in his kitchen had barely managed to cook my roast ham in time for lunch today. While washing up the dishes from this afternoon, I listened to the laughter in the house and smiled happily for the first time in a few weeks. Bella's distress and grief had been quite disheartening. Charlie too, had become overly moody and intolerant as of late, and it had taken its toll on me. Had it not been for Billy and Jacob, I wasn't sure how long the three of us would've kept it together. As much as I had my own apartment a few blocks away from Charlie's, I spent majority of my time under his roof anyway. So, seeing Bella and Jacob smiling and mucking around together today, had given me hope. It was a hope that we would all see better days to come; that we would all get the chance to breathe and live happily for a while, before the world we knew got tossed upside down.

Living with the knowledge and fear of what was in store for our future, was a feat I had mastered over the past fourteen years. It had been a challenge, learning to go about my daily life here in Forks, pretending that there wasn't darkness and suffering somewhere on the horizon. It was a burden I would never have imposed on anyone; not Charlie and not Bella. My world had been ripped away from me so abruptly; so painfully, before I had sought refuge in Forks. The most frightening thing was the fact that mine and Bella's world would spin terribly out of control, the second I was finally allowed to leave this town. Though, that would not be for a long time. I sighed calmly, as I glanced outside Charlie's kitchen window. For now, Bella was not in any immediate danger; unless of course I counted the potential harm she posed to her own self. I shook my head at the teenager and just hoped with time, young Jacob could screw her head back on properly. Her years with Renee had obviously left her rather insecure and mentally unstable. Not that I had anything against my ex-sister-in-law at all. She had just lived a very different lifestyle; one in which Bella, had not necessarily come first on her list of priorities.

As I finished washing and rinsing all Charlie's plates, cutlery and dishes, I surveyed his kitchen, searching for any other work to cover for him. Rather satisfied with the tidy cooking space, a grabbed a tea towel and began drying off all the utensils I had just finished washing, so that he wouldn't have to do it in the morning. Once I had stored away everything from the dish-washing rack, I joined Charlie and Billy in the living room to discover them talking about one of their previous fishing trips together. Having no intention of reliving their memories with them, I decided to check on Jacob and Bella. Though, as I couldn't quite hear any chatting or laughing coming from upstairs, I wasn't entirely sure they would want me disturbing them. Instead I collected my keys from the mantelpiece in the living room and wished Charlie and Billy "goodnight" and "Happy Christmas" again. After turning down multiple requests from both men to stay longer, I asked Charlie to apologise to both Bella and Jacob for me and wish them a good night as well. I collected all the wonderful gifts I had received from everyone earlier that afternoon in a large plastic bag and carried them towards the front door. Charlie got up off his couch and gave me a rather long embrace and told me to be careful on my walk home. That kind of affection from my brother was rare, so I knew he was relatively intoxicated and certainly in a good mood too. He kissed me on the cheek and walked me out his front door; another rare occurrence. I waved goodbye to him as I proceeded down the short street and turned into the next block of houses.

The walk from Charlie's house to my apartment was one I knew like the back of my hand. I had always enjoyed the exercise and fresh air it provided me, as well as the chance to clear my head. Sometimes getting caught up in Charlie's mundane world, left me feeling like I had lost perspective on my own world and problems. This last year however, getting caught up with the happenings in Bella's world, had usually left me feeling anxious and stressed, realising how immediate my own concerns were. Tonight though, the breezy night air and festive joy had sparked a warm happiness within me. Humming a Christmas tune to myself, I began thinking of some of my fonder memories with my late husband; James. I thought of all the times James would play with my fingers and whisper secrets in my ear, or chase me down corridors and tickle me. Those were the little things that would always pop into my mind. Yet it was the more significant things that I truly missed; like confiding my fears in him, and actually feeling safe and sure of the world, while I was with him. I missed my life with him; I missed how happy we had been with each other. Our first Christmas together while we were married, had been with our five month old son; Harry. I had missed James every day since his death fourteen years ago. Though more than anything, I missed Harry – who had been separated from me the same night James had been killed. These past fourteen years, he had grown up under my sister; Petunia's roof. Charlie had not spoken to Petunia in over thirty years, since he had left our family home in London at the age of eleven and moved to Washington. Petunia herself, had stopped speaking with me fifteen years ago, after I had married James. The year later, James was murdered and Petunia was told I was killed also. I had been required to go into hiding after that, and so my elder sister was left to raise my son, with the belief that I was actually dead. There were only a handful of people from my life before Forks, who actually knew I was alive; not including Harry. I longed for the day that I could be reunited with my son. But above anything, I just wanted him to know I was alive, and that I had loved and missed him every day we had been apart. _How did you tell that to a fourteen year old boy, who had grown up without parents?_

By the time I turned onto my street of the block, I had started to shiver in the night air. Living as close as I did to Charlie's house these last few years, I often forgot to carry a coat or jacket with me when I left my own apartment. I fumbled for my keys numbly and shoved the correct one into my apartment door. Turning the handle and pushing the door forward, I found all the lights switched on inside my home. I racked my brain, trying to remember if I had left them on that morning before leaving for Charlie's. I began to panic, realising I had definitely turned them off before locking my apartment door. I took a few deep breaths before nervously stepping forward into my living room, to catch sight of Remus jumping off of my couch quickly.

"Lils," he sprinted over to me enthusiastically.

"You came!" I cried emotionally, as I placed my bag of gifts on the floor and threw my arms around him happily. I had completely forgotten that I was expecting him after the chaos of lunch this afternoon, but overjoyed to see him none the less.

"A promise, is a promise Lils," he kissed my forehead happily as we stood there holding each other for quite possibly five minutes, both of us fighting back the pools of tears threatening to spill from our eyes.

Remus Lupin had been one of my husband's best friends during our time in high school together. The three of us had all been in the same year and had had most of our classes together as well. During our first few years of schooling, James and I had not particularly been on good terms with each other; though Remus and I had been relatively close as peers. He had been my most consistent friend and confidant from the very first day of school. However his loyalty to James, and their two other friends; Sirius and Peter had kept Remus and I from bonding any more than we had. By the time James and I had abandoned our long-term feud and actually started dating in our later school years, I became close with the other two boys, and had been able to spend more time with Remus too. Losing James during the Wizarding War had been quite hard for the both of us; and these past fourteen years provided us with the time to bond further over the loss. Hiding out here in Forks had been torture for me; not having contact with anyone from my previous life, apart from Remus. He had promised me the day I had come out here in hiding, that he would never lose contact with me, if it cost him his life. Christmas that year had been the most painful day of my life; not even two months after losing James and Harry at the end of that October. Remus had spent the whole day down in Forks with me. We helped each other keep our minds off the pain, by talking about absolute nonsense and drowning our livers with bottle after bottle of alcohol. That first Christmas together, Remus made a promise to me, that he would come and spend every Christmas night with me from that year on, and he had never broken that promise. Funnily enough, we had not broken the alcoholic tradition either. What _had_ been broken, year after year – was our record of whiskey bottles consumed on Christmas night.

"Happy Christmas Rem," I pulled away from the man reluctantly. I hadn't seen him in over half a year and it felt good to be with him again.

"Happy Christmas Lils," he smiled happily and backed away to look at me. I chuckled lightly and walked back to my front door to lock it for the rest of the night. I picked up my bag of gifts lying on the floor and carried them over to my island bench top in the kitchen.

"You weren't waiting long were you?" I asked him as he followed me towards the middle section of my apartment. He shook his head smiling at me.

"You've had your kitchen redone since I was last here," Remus remarked, "and the entire floor upstairs," he added and we laughed lightly. He had obviously been waiting for me for a few hours, and had had a lie down in one of the rooms upstairs.

"What do you think?" I smiled lightly, asking for his opinion.

"It's different," he nodded in approval, "is it normal for Muggles?"

"It's modern and stylish," I nodded, my eyes twinkling, "yes, very normal indeed."

"As long as you like it then," Remus laughed with me and pulled out his wand from his back pocket. "I'm cooking tonight," he added. I stood glued to my polished floorboards, marvelling as he pointed his wand at my large stainless steel fridge and various objects and ingredients began flying out and landing neatly on my bench top. I had not been allowed to practice magic since the night James died. Growing up in a non-magical home, I had learnt how to cook, clean and maintain a household by the age of ten - so adjusting to life without magic had been easy after James' death. However, I did feel jealous when magic was performed in front of me. It also captivated me as well; I stood there gaping at the incredibility of it all. Remus pointed his wand at my cupboards, as pots and pans began to fly out as well. Ingredients were magically pouring themselves into measuring cups and then tipping into dishes which were already simmering over my stove.

"You're enjoying this aren't you?" I scoffed at Remus, realising he was only doing it to entertain me.

"That look on your face; it's priceless," he pointed out happily. I shook my head defiantly and walked away from the bench top to prove a point.

"I'm going upstairs to change," I snapped at him playfully.

"Oh, don't bother," he smirked and pointed his wand at me. The next thing I knew, the white and red halter dress I was wearing had turned into a pair of trackies and a t-shirt and the strappy heels I had worn to Christmas lunch at Charlie's, were transfigured into my fluffy bedroom slippers. Remus was obviously not going to let me win this evening.

"Are you done?" I crossed my arms over my chest stubbornly and raised my eyebrow at him.

"Nope," he chuckled and pointed his wand at my head. My long auburn hair fell out of the messy up-do I had it in, "much better," he added and turned back to my stove. I shook my head at my old friend and walked over to my fridge, removing a bottle of my favourite red wine. I reached up into one of the higher cupboards in my kitchen, stretching on my tiptoes to reach two wine glasses from inside. I was a fraction too short; I usually just grabbed a chair or stool to climb up on, to reach them.

"Oi, show-off! Make yourself useful," I called out to Remus, and indicated to the cupboard above me.

"Please?" he raised his eyebrow.

"Please!" I rolled my eyes, before he levitated the two wine glasses from the shelf above me and placed them gently on the counter in front of me. He also took the liberty of magically opening the wine bottle I had in my hand and swiftly pouring some into the two glasses for us. I picked up the two glasses and gave one to him.

"Cheers!" we both said at the same time and clinked our glasses together, "Happy Christmas," I added and he mimicked me. I pulled up one of my new bar stools and sat down at my bench top, while Remus continued to stir some dish on the stove. Watching him cook in my kitchen was rather amusing. People assumed cooking was so easy with magic, but in actual fact it was no easier than cooking without it. You still had to have a good idea of what you were doing in the kitchen; you had to know exact measurements, processes and which ingredients to mix with others. I smiled fondly at the man in front of me, and wondered why on earth he wasn't married to some gorgeous witch from the Wizarding world. He was charming, smart, handsome and an excellent cook too. Knowing Remus, it was probably because he thought he didn't deserve anyone or more specifically because of his werewolf condition. The fact that he turned into a werewolf at the full moon every month, had never worried me. It had never worried James, Sirius or Peter either. The three friends had embraced his condition happily and helped him through it every month by turning into their animagus forms. I hoped one day Remus would find happiness with a special woman, because he was a man who truly deserved that kind of love and affection.

"So how are Charlie and Bella doing?" Remus enquired casually, as he continued to stir a pot of pasta on my stove. I wasn't sure where to begin with those two, nor did I have the energy to explain the last few months to him. "Is she still dating the vampire?"

"No," I sighed, figuring it was probably healthy for me to confide in him, just as I always had. "He left her heartbroken at the end of September. She's struggled through some sort of depression since then and she's only started coming out of her shell these past couple of weeks," I stated unemotionally. Remus stopped stirring the pasta and lowered the temperature of the stove, before he walked over to my side of the bench top.

"How are you and Charlie coping?" he stood in front of me, looking at me with sincere concern.

"It really got to Charlie; he had no idea how to handle himself around her or how to make her feel better. For me it wasn't so bad," I smiled, "I was just glad Edward didn't try to convert her or something stupid..."

"Change her into a vampire?" Remus raised his eyebrow and I nodded my head.

"I'm sure eventually he and his family would have wanted to change her, so she could be part of their coven. Knowing Bella, it probably already crossed her mind."

"Does she know you're aware of them yet?" he asked and I shook my head looking at the floor between Remus and myself.

"How can I explain it to her? The only reason I found out about them was because I'm a witch; I could sense the magic inside them," I said miserably.

"Has Charlie got any idea yet?" he asked me, trying to piece the puzzle together and I shook my head again.

"Charlie would hit the roof if he knew what they were. Finding out that I was a witch was enough for him; he's had to keep that secret all his life. I mean, he left home at the age of eleven because of it. But no, he has no idea; not even a suspicion of the vampires' true nature. Nor does he have any idea about the native wolf tribe living under his nose."

"You mean his old friend's wolf pack?" Remus pulled out the bar stool next to me and sat down, never taking his eyes off my face and I nodded again.

"Billy Black," I smiled, impressed that Remus had remembered that small detail. "It's not actually his pack; I think the wolf gene in him has remained dormant all his life. But I know just recently, his son Jacob phased for the first time; I could sense the magic around him. He and Bella have become quite close these last few weeks," I shook my head. "Actually, if it hadn't been for Jake, I'm not sure how long Bella would've remained depressed."

"She's gone from the vampire to a werewolf?" Remus chuckled, "she sounds like a handful Lils," he reached over and squeezed my hand on the bench top.

"Charlie still thinks she's a little angel of some sort," we both laughed lightly and Remus returned to my stove to finish up the pasta.

"So Bella doesn't know you're aware of any of this?" he asked me to clarify.

"No, actually I don't think Bella is even aware of the wolf tribe yet. Jake may have not felt ready to confide in her, as it's only just happened to him." Remus smiled at me and began pulling out bowls and cutlery for his pasta. I jumped off the bar stool and quickly cleared my dining table in the other lounge room, laying out place-mats and napkins for us. Remus had prepared a salad dish, garlic bread and a large dish of spaghetti marinara for us. Together we carried everything over to my dining table, along with the bottle of wine. It amazed me how much I missed Remus when he was away, and how easy it felt to be with him when he returned. We chatted easily about my teaching job at the small kindergarten in Forks. I told him the same funny stories, I had told everyone at lunch earlier today. I had been working there for the entire fourteen years that I had been here in hiding, so Remus knew from his previous visits that I loved the little kids in the kinder. He used to tease me, and say that one day I would kidnap one of them because I had always found them so charming and adorable. At times working in the kindergarten made me anxious and sad, because I had been so young giving birth to Harry and then not being able to have the chance to raise him, was quite unsettling. Sometimes I wished I could have more kids, and Remus knew this. We had had a number of conversations over the years, about my future and the opportunity I had to remarry and have another child or two. But I had always dismissed it, claiming that I had no intention of bringing another child into this world, when the one I already had, had such a distressing future ahead of him. After filling Remus in on the kindergarten, there was a mutual silence between us across the table. We both knew the next topic we were going to discuss, but we also both knew I didn't want to ask it or hear it. Instead I decided to skate over it and avoid it for a little while longer.

"How's Sirius doing?" I asked about our other old friend, smiling brightly at Remus while pouring us both another glass of the wine. Remus paused for about a minute or so, watching me with the wine bottle; I knew straight away he was going to bring up the topic I didn't want to discuss just yet.

"He's healthy and enjoying the new freedom; but he's worried about Harry…" I took a deep breath.

"And why would he be worried about Harry?" I asked Remus in a whisper. It had been six months since I had heard any news of my son. The last time Remus had visited me in Forks was in the summer after Harry's third year at Hogwarts. Remus himself had been offered a teaching position at the school as the Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor during that year. He had had the opportunity to bond with my son, as his teacher, a new role model and a friend. That year the school had been heavily guarded by Dementors, and Harry seemed to have been a walking magnet for them. Using the chance to spend more time with him, upon my request, Remus had successfully taught Harry to produce a Patronus Charm, to defend himself against the Dementors. The reason the school had been surrounded by those vile creatures, had been because of our old friend Sirius' escape from the Wizarding prison at the beginning of that school year. The entire Wizarding World believed that Sirius Black was out to murder Harry. Of course, Remus, I and the Hogwarts Headmaster; Professor Dumbledore knew otherwise. Though purely for appearances sake, Dumbledore had agreed with the Ministry of Magic, to allow the Dementors to secure the school until Sirius was caught and Harry was deemed safe again. After Remus' interference, Harry eventually met his Godfather; Sirius and was informed that the older man was not out to murder him. That year, Harry had gained friendships with two of his father's best mates; it was more than I could ask for. However at the end of that school year, Remus' werewolf condition had been leaked out to the school and Wizarding community and he was forced to resign from his teaching position at Hogwarts. Remus studied my face for a good two minutes solid. It made me so nervous about the kind of news he had to share with me. I know he didn't mean to keep me in such suspense, but it didn't make it any easier either.

"This school year, Hogwarts was chosen to host the Triwizard Tournament on their grounds. Harry's name was pulled out of the Goblet of Fire Lils; he's a competitor for Hogwarts…"

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_A/N:_ So we finally have another favourite Harry Potter character in Forks ! Any thoughts or comments on the friendship between Remus and Lily? I'm also sorry that this chapter was so lengthy; I just wanted to explore the friendship between the two Hogwarts pals and set up the correct vibe for them in the future. Hopefully it's also clear where abouts in the Hogwarts timeline, that this fanfic is sitting now. As you guys can probably tell, this story is setting up to be a multi-layered piece, with multiple character POV's as well. Hope you're all enjoying it, and keeping up too. **Also, please review guys! **xx


	6. Another Record Broken

_A/N:_ This is what I would have liked to happen; – had J.K. Rowling's world ever crossed over with Stephanie Meyers'.

_Disclaimer:_ I do not own anything from their creations, besides the following plot. xx

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**Chapter Six – Another Record Broken**

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**_25 December 1994_**

**_Remus Lupin POV_**

For two decades, I had strived to be a source of joy and comfort for Lily. Yet sitting there across the dining table from her, all I could do was watch helplessly as the colour drained from her face, from the shock and horror of my announcement. Her reaction to the news of the Tournament was to be expected. Though I couldn't help but feel unjustified, in burdening her with such a terrifying revelation. There had been countless times over the past few years, in which I had shaded her from truths I deemed unnecessary for her ears. Unfortunately, this was not one I could keep from her - it was not my place to do so, and with that alone, I felt frustrated that I had now become a source of despair for this woman.

I waited patiently as she slowly lowered her wine glass to the table in front of her, her eyes never leaving my face. Not watching what she was doing, Lily's glass knocked over the edge of the table, spilling brilliantly onto her white satin tablecloth. Neither of us dropped the other's gaze to look at the mess or attempt to clean it up. We sat there staring at each other for what seemed like forever. I wasn't even sure if she was breathing any more. She hadn't blinked in two minutes either. I got up from my chair and walked over to her side of the table, kneeling down before her and grasping both her hands in mine.

"He's going to be alright Lily, he's made it through the First Task already," I tried to reassure her as she sat there staring down at my face, barely comprehending what I was saying.

"Oh Merlin Rem, you know kids die in that Tournament!" Lily took her first breath in a few minutes, and started gasping desperately for air.

"Lils, breathe; come on, take another deep breath," I soothed her calmly as she began hyperventilating and tearing up. I stood up and rubbed her back as she leant her forehead against my chest trying to quickly recompose herself. I knew that this was going to happen when I got around to telling her. Harry had a flare for trouble; he was yet to complete a _quiet_ year at Hogwarts since he started there. It was frustrating to say the least; even as a role model or guardian of his, I worried for his safety and well being constantly. Which is why sometimes I could feel my own heart break for Lily; as it would be torture for any mother, not being able to protect their child from certain dangers. This had been the main reason why I had kept so much from her over the years. She was nothing but helpless, when it came to Harry's affairs, while she was out here in Forks. It didn't seem right for her to have to hear of all his mishaps, troubles and hardships when there truly wasn't anything she could do but worry. There were also times like this, in which I didn't give her the credit she deserved. Lily was a strong woman, and as much as I felt the need to shelter her, she demonstrated many times over, that she didn't need to be protected from reality.

"He's under age, how is this even possible?" she finally brought her breathing back to an even rate and I sat down on the dining chair next to her. She took a last deep breath and focused her eyes firmly on me for an answer.

"Dumbledore, Sirius and I aren't sure actually. The Goblet was charmed to spit out four names this year; there are two Hogwarts competitors; Harry and another boy named Diggory. We think the Goblet was tricked into accepting his name in the first place," I offered gently and Lily stared back at me with the most horrific expression on her face.

"How could he be so stupid to put his name in there anyway; how did he even come up with a charm to trick the Goblet?" Lily cried miserably.

"No, no - he's claiming it wasn't him Lils and we really don't think it was either," I sighed, knowing it was going to be a long night.

"He was set up?" she stared back at me with wide eyes.

"We don't know if someone enchanted his name and threw it in there for fun, or if someone wants him in the competition for a reason," I responded calmly, not feeling the least bit calm. I was terrified for Harry; we all were, Dumbledore more than anyone.

"Don't sugar coat it Rem!" she snapped at me angrily. "Given that someone has gone through the effort of messing with the Goblet, to spit out four names - I'm sure it's not too far fetched for us to assume Harry's name was deliberately put in there. Maybe it was the Ministry? Or even the Malfoy family; didn't you say Harry's still having problems with their son?"

"Yeah he is.. but I doubt it was either them or the Ministry. They wouldn't be reckless enough to mess around with something as renowned or severe as an international Tournament," I reasoned with her calmly. We sat there at her dining table for close to an hour, discussing every little possibility, regarding how Harry's name could have gotten into the Goblet, as well as speculated on what some of the upcoming tasks were going to be. Throughout the hour, Lily drifted off into numerous thoughtful silences; whether she was thinking up new conspiracies regarding Harry's name and the Goblet, or, merely fighting off another tearful break down, I wasn't sure. Though honestly, her strength and composure were admirable. I really hadn't believed she would be able to handle the situation as calmly as she had. I conjured up a clipping from the Daily Prophet, to show her Harry's performance in his First Task with the Hungarian Horntail, thinking that his success and skills would give her a little more confidence in him. However I managed to achieve quite the opposite; Lily became more horrified for her son than ever.

Over the past four years, since Harry's starting at Hogwarts, he had managed to get himself involved with a series of dangerous challenges and encounters. In these last few years, I dreaded my visits to Forks because I had had to personally inform Lily of her son's irritating flare for trouble and danger. Try explaining to a mother, that her son tackled an adult mountain troll; got targeted by his Defence teacher who shared a body with the Dark Lord; opened the Chamber of Secrets and took on a full size Basilisk; and also managed to drive off a hundred Dementors with a single Patronus Charm; after nearly being attacked by an adult werewolf.. Informing Lily of the events surrounding the end of Harry's third year had been difficult; I had been subjected to her personal fury and scrutiny for attacking her son, while in my werewolf form. However Lily calmed down eventually, after my continued apologising and her acknowledging that I had not been myself at the time. I had always hated that horrid part of me that took over every month; but above anything I hated that I had let Lily down because of it. Sure, I had kept certain truths a secret from Lily, but others were not mine to hide.

"Maybe if he fakes an injury of some sort they'll let him pull out of the competition?" Lily suggested hopefully, breaking me out of my reverie. I glanced over at her and was pleased to see she had phased out of her thoughtful daze.

"Lils...he's under age and they still made him compete; I doubt an injury or even purposefully breaking the rules is going to earn him a yellow card. Anyway look, Dumbledore's got Moody keeping an eye on Harry for now…"

"Moody?" Lily sat up straight.

"Oh sorry, yes. Mad-Eye was given my position of Defence Professor for this year. He's keeping a close eye on Harry for us. I actually think he's giving Harry clues and advice too," I stated sheepishly.

"He's helping Harry cheat?" Lily smirked; she had always liked Alastor, "Well whatever it takes to keep him alive." She got up from her chair and began clearing the plates from the table. I shook my head at her perseverance and pulled out my wand. Everything that had been on the dining table rose up into the air above both our heads and flew straight into the kitchen. I removed the dark wine stain from her satin table cloth and we both made our way back into Lily's living room. After swiftly clearing up the kitchen, Lily smiled at me for the first time that hour, before bringing up some funny stories about Charlie.

"Lils, you're okay with all this?" I asked, surprised by her quick recovery from the news of the Tournament.

"Yeah I will be," she dismissed my concern absently.

"Lils?" I tried again.

"No of course I'm not!" she snapped unhappily rounding on me. "But it's not like I can bloody well do anything about it can I? I'm stuck here in this little corner of the world with no say about what goes on in my son's life!"

"I'm sorry Lils...I didn't mean to..." I reached out to grab hold of her, but she walked away from me miserably. I stood and watched the woman cry over her kitchen sink for five minutes more before walking over and wrapping my arms around her. Lily abandoned the anger directed at me and sobbed for a while longer as I held her. I cursed Dumbledore in my head; hating him for putting us all in the position we were in. At the same time, I couldn't hate him for saving her life...

"They had the Yule Ball this evening," I remarked, trying to cheer her up, as her sobbing slowed down. Lily lifted her head from my shoulders and looked up at me with watery eyes quite hopefully.

"Who did Harry take?" she enquired curiously. I raised my eyebrow at my friend and shook my head; Lily laughed knowing full well I had no interest in the superficial love lives of teenagers. "What about that girl he's always with? Hermione isn't it?" she wiped her eyes and untangled herself from my arms.

"Lils, I told you last year; they're just friends!" I scoffed at her and she went back to pottering around her kitchen to distract herself from the new knowledge of the Tournament.

"It's a shame, the girl sounds rather bright; she would be a good influence on him," I rolled my eyes at her thoughts. I knew the dynamics of the close friendship between Harry and Hermione, and their best mate Ron, as I had had them in my classes the previous year. I was rather sure, if anything, Hermione and Ron were actually interested in each other, but they may have been too young to act on it.

"She's already a significant influence on him," I remarked, remembering my dealings with the trio from Hogwarts. "Hermione does a lot of his homework for him," I added smiling, "Sort of how you wrote all James and Sirius' papers for them."

"Those two needed all the help they could get," Lily smiled back at me, picking up the wine bottle and two glasses and walking over to the couch in her living room. I followed her happily, relieved by her sudden change of mood.

"You never offered to help Peter or me during school," I teased, taking the bottle from her hand and pouring us some more wine.

"Peter was already a lost cause, and you were too smart to need my help Rem," she chuckled lightly. I was glad to hear her laugh, I had been worried she was still stressing over the news of the Tournament.

"You thought I was smart?" I was surprised to hear she thought that.

"Rem, you were smarter than me during school. You just wasted all your time with those three. I'm positive your grades could have exceeded mine had you straightened out your priorities." I was stunned by her response. I knew I had done well in my schooling, but to hear Lily say she thought I was cleverer than her, well, it was news to me.

"Cheers to that," I chuckled, clinking glasses with her again. We spent the following few hours of the night talking about various topics from over the years. We rambled on about Quidditch scores and teams and then moved on to Hogwarts Professors and terrible Prefects and Head Students. Lily talked about the difference in the weather between Forks and London and I enquired after Charlie's love life and job. Before we had consumed two bottles of wine between us, I conjured up Lily's Christmas gifts into my lap and she too jumped off the couch to find mine. After rummaging upstairs for a good five minutes she came trampling back down to the couch carrying a few wrapped items. I started off by giving her the most expensive gift. She kissed me on the cheek gratefully, and began to happily unwrap the designer Muggle watch I had bought her. On the inside of the gold wrist band I had magically engraved the words '_Yours is the friendship of a lifetime's bliss. With love always, Remus.'_ She absolutely loved it and I was thrilled. It pleased me to see her tear up after reading the engraving too, and I knew I would see it on her wrist every day from then on. She then handed me a rather large wrapped box. I opened it eagerly, wondering what could have possibly been of that size. Unexpectedly, I found an expensive telescope and tripod set.

"Oh Lils, you didn't!" I embraced her fondly, amazed that she had even bought the contraption for me. We had had a conversation a year earlier about the monthly cycles of the moon and certain stars. I had expressed an interest in astronomy but complained that I wouldn't have the time with my new teaching job at Hogwarts.

"Now you even have the time to use it," she smiled happily at me. Our gift exchange continued on for another fifteen minutes; I received an elaborate quill with a rare black and royal blue feather, a large bottle of Knotgrass Mead, a box of Muggle chocolates, as well as a set of new dark purple and black dress robes. Lily's gifts were always so thoughtful and practical; she knew I would use each of them.

For her, I had organised an album of photos of Harry and his friends, along with an assortment of wizarding treats from Honeydukes Sweetshop. I had also bought her an expensive Muggle perfume that smelt like orchids and lilies, an antique glass wizarding chess set and the latest edition of The Standard Book of Spells. Lily laughed happily at her final gift, claiming that she had certainly needed it as she had forgotten all her basic charms and spells after not practising for the past fourteen years. I was a little doubtful when I had bought it, because I didn't think Lily would make use of it any time soon; as she was likely to stay in hiding for another few years at least. But knowing Lily, she would dive happily into the extensive reading and refresh her mind when she had nothing better to do. The expensive gifts we treated each other to, usually covered birthdays, Christmas and the overall appreciation of each other's friendship. Neither of us really had anyone else to spoil in our lives, other than Bella and Charlie, and Sirius and Harry for myself.

"Oh here, this is for Sirius," she handed me a large wrapped package.

"What is it?" I shook the parcel childishly.

"No no no, don't you'll break it!" she grabbed my wrists to stop me from shaking the gift. "Just give it to him," she chuckled. I rolled my eyes and placed the secret package to the side, as we both took another sip of wine and continued conversing about our school memories from Hogwarts.

Feeling like we were about to settle in for a good night together, I conjured up my old gramophone and began playing some old songs that Lily and I knew well by Celestina Warbeck. My old friend began laughing immediately as the music came on and we opened up our first bottle of whiskey for the evening. Pouring ourselves two tumblers of the fine liquid, we swallowed three glasses each. I then took hold of Lily's hand and dragged her into the centre of her living room where we began to sway and dance pathetically to the songs. Within another fifteen minutes time, I could feel the alcohol going to my head. Lily's giggling had gradually become louder as well. Not entirely sure how noisy we were being, I pulled out my wand and muttered a silencing charm around Lily's apartment. I pulled her closer into my chest and we continued to move around like a pair of merry, hazy fools. After the record of songs finished on the gramophone I conjured up another slower paced set of music from our schooling years. We held onto each other tightly and swayed for the first few tracks, before we retreated to the couch with our second bottle of whiskey.

"So, how does it feel – to be – thirty five, this year?" she slurred and we both giggled.

"Honestly, the same way it felt – to be thirty four," I chuckled back and we laughed about nothing in particular.

"I will second that!" she hiccuped and we clinked our whiskey glasses together.

"We're – getting old Lils," I chuckled stupidly and she placed her hand on my cheek casually.

"Well – you don't look it," we giggled together.

"Why thank you – my dear," I got up to fetch another bottle of whiskey for us, but stumbled all the way to Lily's fridge. I could hear her laughing hysterically from the couch behind me. The next thing I knew she was by my side and some how we both managed to open the fridge, retrieve the next bottle of whiskey and drag each other back to the couch without falling over or smashing the bottle we carried. I poured us both some more alcohol into the tumblers and we toasted something else, clinking our glasses together.

"Sirius – is such a dog sometimes," I commented and we both giggled for a while.

"What did he – do to you – now Rem?" Lily asked still amused.

"He keeps saying - Harry likes him more," I answered her angrily. I had gradually becoming more and more jealous of the bond Sirius shared with his Godson.

"Noooo he doesn't," Lily chuckled, mocking me and then ruffling my hair before turning serious. "Why – would Pete – sell us out – like that?" It was a question Lily had asked year after year on Christmas night. Peter's betrayal had really shaken her; fourteen years on, she was yet to get over the pain. Though in all fairness, Sirius hadn't gotten over Peter's betrayal either; though his feelings towards our old friend were more along the lines of anger and hatred.

"Cause he's an absolute ass!" I slurred unhappily to Lily.

"I hate him," Lily thought hard.

"I do too," I hiccuped a few times. We sat in silence for a good ten minutes, thinking over everything that had happened with Peter's betrayal and James' death. It had been the hardest thing either of us had gone through.

"I don't – hate him Rem," she added.

"Me neither," I placed my arms around her and we cuddled on the couch.

"Why haven't – you – kissed me yet, Rem?" she giggled like a school girl.

"Cause, I like you too much Lils," I stuttered back happily.

"I think," she paused unsurely, "that I like that answer," she smiled back at me.

"Good," we laughed together and poured ourselves another glass of whiskey. Sometime later in the night Lily asked me about the women in my life and I told her I didn't have any. Naturally she didn't believe me; she had always seen right through me. So I told her about my new friendship with Nymphadora Tonks; a youngish witch from the Ministry. Lily was pleased I had found someone and wished me the best with Tonks. That made me laugh and I told Lily she was an absolute clown.

"And I – absolutely – agree with you," she giggled ridiculously and picked up another full tumbler of whiskey.

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Trying to remember where I was the next morning was hardly difficult. Somewhere between the drinking, dancing, and chatting – Lily and I had fallen asleep on her couch together. I glanced down to see my old friend sleeping soundly against my chest. That had generally been how Christmas night had ended the past few years anyway. Moving my head gently, so I wouldn't wake her, I looked around Lily's living room and chuckled to myself. There were feathers from her cushions absolutely everywhere; a smashed bottle of whiskey all over her tiled floor and my gramophone had been turned on its side haphazardly. I wondered what had we managed to get up to the previous night. I checked the clock on Lily's kitchen wall and was pleased to see it was only before nine in the morning. I closed my eyes smiling and draped an arm around Lily's waist. I drifted off back to sleep for a while before Lily woke me with the smell of eggs and bacon. She was brilliant; there was no doubt about that. I pulled out my pocket watch to check the time and sat bolt up right. It was just after three in the afternoon.

"You look as bad as I feel," she yawned sleepily, as she started plating the eggs and bacon.

"It couldn't really be after three?" I ruffled my hand through my hair.

"Go take a shower upstairs," she suggested as I caught another look of her living room. It was worse than I thought I'd seen earlier that morning. I walked groggily upstairs to her ensuite and had a three minute shower, before dressing myself and heading back downstairs again.

"Thanks," I replied as Lily handed me a plate of hot greasy food. Before I took my first mouthful, I figured it was probably wise to cast a hangover cure on both of us. I looked around the room for my wand and saw it lying under the couch that we had fallen asleep on. I got up off my bar stool and went to retrieve it slowly. I wasn't sure about Lily, but my head was extremely heavy. I pointed the wand at her first and within seconds she began to stand up straight. Casting the charm on myself, I instantly felt better and happily finished my plate of food within minutes. We both went and sat back down on the couch with glasses of water in our hands.

"Thanks for the watch Remus," Lily began slowly, looking down at the elegant piece fastened around her wrist.

"Lils, don't mention it honestly," I smiled at her genuinely.

"Do you want a chocolate frog?" she asked me tiredly and I nodded as she reached over to the assorted hamper of lollies I had given her the previous night. We both opened a packet each and watched our frogs jump out of the cardboard quickly. By the time they made it halfway across Lily's living room floor, they had completely lost their jumping capabilities.

"Accio frogs," I summoned them back to me as we chuckled.

"Mine won," Lily teased, pleased that her frog had made it further across the floor than mine had. "Ew Rem, don't eat it; he's been on the floor." I shrugged my shoulders and took a bite of Lily's frog as well.

"Did we break our record last night?" I asked her curiously, not remembering how many bottles of whiskey we had consumed.

"Two and a half," Lily nodded smiling. We broke the previous Christmas' record by half a bottle. That was amusing; my head had felt much worse than two bottles worth of whiskey.

"I think age is slowing us down Lils," we both chuckled in agreement.

"You're going gray," she commented, as she ran her hand lightly through my hair.

"You said I was handsome last night," I teased her playfully.

"I did not," she scoffed and punched my arm. We sat in a mutual silence for a few minutes before Lily turned to face me seriously.

"So, I think it's time you tell me what you were keeping from me last night," she stated calmly and for the first time in a few days, I wasn't worried about her reaction. It always amazed me how well Lily knew me. The fact that we could have as much fun as we had the previous night, and for her to still know something was eating away at me, really cemented the kind of friendship we had shared over the years. I ran my hand through my hair quickly before, I shifted on the couch so my body was facing her completely.

"Dumbledore told Sirius and I just recently, that Snape's Dark Mark has gradually started to burn again. Snape had a brief conversation with Igor Karkaroff too, and confirmed with Albus that his Dark Mark has begun to burn also." Lily paled quicker than she had the previous night when I told her about the Tournament. Maybe I shouldn't have been so quick to confide in her.

"It could be nothing right?" she asked desperately. "I mean, surely those tattoo things play up all the time?"

"I hope it really is nothing Lils," I responded evenly, trying to reassure her. Yet, we both knew it was unlikely; the Dark Mark's on the arms of all the Death Eaters were laced with dark magic. It was unlikely that they would play up.

"This can't be a coincidence with Harry being thrown into the Tournament," she panicked.

"No Lily, I doubt it has any correlation at all," I answered her speculation as steadily as I could.

"This is happening sooner than I thought it would Rem," I closed my eyes realising she was probably right.

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_A/N:_ Let me know what you all thought of _Chapter Six?_ Does anyone else feel bad for Lily; not being able to help her son or do anything to contribute to the happenings back in the magical world? Thoughts on why she is stuck hiding in Forks? I'd love to hear what some of you thought about the friendship between Remus and Lily? Hope you enjoyed that chapter, oh and **please review guys! **xx


	7. Two Can Keep a Secret

_A/N:_ This is what I would have liked to happen; – had J.K. Rowling's world ever crossed over with Stephanie Meyers'.

Disclaimer: I do not own anything from their creations, besides the following plot. xx

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**Chapter Seven – Two Can Keep a Secret**

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**_14 March 1995_**

**_Isabella Swan POV_**

Whenever Jacob and I hung out together, there were usually long periods of mutual silence between us. It had never bothered me before, or made me anxious. This afternoon however, he had kept me waiting for his response for over ten frustrating minutes. When he had finally confided in me about the tribe's werewolf secret a few weeks ago, I had burst out immediately, voicing how I felt. I just assumed he would pay me the same courtesy and not allow me to sit here in this nervous agony. I turned my head away from him and gazed out over the La Push cliff top that we were sitting on. This place had become one of our special hideouts over the past few months. Jake brought me here a few weeks ago to tell me about the werewolf pack and the tribe's history. I had been so terrified when he had phased right in front of me for the first time that I jumped off the cliff into the water below. Unable to swim very well, I had thrashed around in the strong waves for what seemed like hours. Luckily for me, Jacob had dived in straight after me and resuscitated me on the shore.

"Well I'm certainly not going to jump off this cliff, if that's what you're expecting me to do…" Jake grinned next to me, finally breaking the silence. I punched him lightly on the arm and he threw his arm protectively around my shoulders while we sat there. "You should've told me earlier Bells."

"YOU JUST MADE ME WAIT TEN MINUTES!" I shrugged away from his arm and hit him a few times on the shoulders. Jacob grabbed both my hands in an attempt to subdue me, but I managed to break free of his grip and assault him further.

"Alright, alright; relax Bells," he laughed easily but quickly composed himself, setting a serious expression across his face. "These dreams you've had…what do you think they mean?"

It had been exactly six months since Edward and his family had left Forks last year. I had spent the first three months longing after him; imagining their spontaneous return, in which Edward would come and tell me he had never stopped wanting me. But after a while, reality kicked in and I realised there were no vampires returning to Forks, Washington – or even the United States for that matter. This miserable, rainy town was still my home and it would only ever be what I made of it. So I spent another forty-eight hours crying out every remaining depressing tear I had in my body and then I woke up. I woke up from my three months of self pity and agony. It was time to start fresh; to do something with my life. My wake up call had been just in time for Christmas and New Years as well. Realising that I needed new friendships in my life, to keep things entertaining in Forks; I sought out the company of Jacob and some of his friends from La Push. Along with the company of Angela, Jessica, Mike and Eric from school, my friendship circles were healthy again and Charlie and Aunt Lily seemed pleased.

However just after Christmas time, I had started having disturbing nightmares. It was never the same dream, but always with similar content. I had dreamt of myself setting objects on fire with my bare hands; of making objects fly and transform into completely new objects. These dreams consisted of weird explosions in mid air, awful clothing, strange creatures I had never seen; big and small and they consisted of bizarre wooden sticks everyone carried around with them. For a few weeks I thought my imagination was just playing games with me, trying to keep me entertained and distracted from Edward's absence. Though as the months past on, I realised something was wrong about these visions that my subconscious was showing me in my sleep. I had kept these dreams and visions to myself for as long as I could, until last night I had dreamt of something I could not comprehend. I had seen my Aunt Lily holding one of those wooden sticks; standing alongside people she seemed friendly with torturing a man in a black cape. So, I finally decided to confide in Jacob.

"I honestly don't know Jake; it could just be my imagination or it could be something more…" I answered his question unsurely.

"You don't really think magic or sorcery is real do you?" he asked me sceptically.

"I didn't think vampires and werewolves were real…" I implied sarcastically and he rolled his eyes at me.

"Well even then; you don't think your Aunt Lily is capable of hurting or killing anyone right? I mean she's the nicest and sweetest person I know!" Jacob protested.

"I don't know Jake, I mean if this magic is real and my aunt has lied about it all this time… then maybe I don't know her that well at all. Maybe she could be capable of harming someone…"

"You do realise how ridiculous you sound?" he raised an eyebrow at me. "Besides, forget about Lily for now. Think about all the dreams you had prior to last night's dream…"

Jacob was right; regardless of the dream I had had about my aunt, I had been having dreams about myself using magic as well. I needed to rethink my concerns here; maybe I should be worried about my own sanity. There was a chance that I was actually losing my mind. Maybe my subconscious was playing games with me, or acting up because I was missing Edward too much. I stopped and considered how much I had wanted to be part of the Cullen family; to live eternally with them in their world. It wasn't quite so far fetched, to think that my mind had created this dark magical world in my dreams that my aunt was a part of, for some reason.

"Besides, maybe that guy she was torturing was actually a bad guy? You know, like how the pack kills vampires?" Jacob suggested helpfully. I had not really gotten used to the idea of Jacob and his friends ripping off the heads of vampires. Every time he brought it up, or it came to mind, I imagined Jacob pulling Edward to pieces. I cringed quickly at the thought. "Oh, sorry…" he apologised, noticing my reaction.

"No, it's not you…" I looked away from Jacob unhappily. "I think I'm losing my mind Jake."

"I don't think you are Bells; maybe you should just go ask Lily?" I glanced over at Jacob incredulously.

"I'm sure that'll go well," we both laughed imagining my conversation with my aunt about the nightmares I was having. "Keep my secret?"

"Well, you are keeping mine," he replied and nudged me lightly on the arm. I looked up at his face and there was a deep intensity in his gaze. I felt my stomach summersault and my brain freeze up for a few seconds. This was Jacob, there was no chance he could be flirting with me. I had to stop imagining that he was; because I was still hung up on Edward. I tore my eyes away from his and admired the beautiful sunset in front of me. This cliff top really was something special. We sat there quietly for a few minutes until the sun had disappeared below the horizon. "I should get you home…" he spoke softly, and I could not miss the disappointment in his tone.

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A/N: **Please review guys!** I hope you all enjoyed _Chapter Seven_ and the growing romance between Bella and Jake. Any comments in favour of their relationship or against? Give me an idea if any of you would like to see them eventually together? Also what do you think is going on with Bella's dreams? Sorry this chapter was so short too. xx


	8. None of Our Business

_A/N:_ This is what I would have liked to happen; – had J.K. Rowling's world ever crossed over with Stephanie Meyers'.

Disclaimer: I do not own anything from their creations, besides the following plot. xx

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**Chapter Eight – None of Our Business**

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**_15 March 1995_**

**_Sam Uley POV_**

Every single limb in my body was aching after the long night of patrolling. I groaned miserably, as I stomped my way through the forest in human form, making my way back to the small cottage on the edge of the reservation, just after sunrise. As much as I hated to see so many of the young Quileute boys phasing into our wolf forms, I was desperate for more members of the pack to share patrols with. Just after Christmas time last year, I met one of my ex-girlfriend's cousins; Emily and imprinted on her. I had never felt happier in my life; as she had literally become my reason for waking up every morning. Though, since the return of an unfamiliar vampire to our area, I had had to increase the number of day and night patrols. Emily and I had only been together for a few months, and majority of that time I had spent in my wolf form, roaming around the reservation. _How was I supposed to show Emily that I was falling in love with her, when I barely had any time to spend by her side?_

As I walked out from the forest tree line towards my property this morning, I thought briefly over my past few months with Emily. We had been on a handful of cute dates together and spent a few cosy nights curled up on the couch as well. Though I knew, I seriously needed to spoil her with a surprise soon. Even though she was my imprint, and would never leave me; Emily deserved to be treated like royalty. After everything she had already put up with from me and the pack; the least I could do was treat her with something special. I crossed over the driveway of my cottage and bounded up onto the front steps of the porch. There was a bed with my name on it, right behind that door.

"Oi!" I recognised the human voice of my Beta, yelling out to me in anger. I spun around, bracing for a fight. "I think you need to have a word with your friend Lily Swan." There was a name I hadn't heard in a few months; I wondered what Jacob was crapping on about now.

"Alright, you've got my attention," I nodded my head towards the young teenager to elaborate further.

"Bella's been hav…" I interrupted the kid immediately.

"This is about Bella? Why is it always about Bella these days; what is it with you and this girl Jake?" I demanded in frustration as I opened the front door of my cottage and walked inside. Jacob followed me quietly into the dimly lit living space and shut the door behind him. I stomped over to my fridge and poured myself a glass of orange juice. "Seriously kid; you're skipping out on patrols to hang out with her, you spend half your time at the sheriff's place rather than on the res, and all you think about while you're out patrolling are the conversations you've had with her."

"I do not!" he protested arrogantly, taking a seat at my bench top.

"I can hear your thoughts you idiot," I rolled my eyes at him and he squirmed uncomfortably. I was sick and tired of reliving moments between Jacob and the vampire girl. All I saw in his mind these days were memories of her smile and laughter, of him holding her hand or them snuggling up on the couch together. It was sickening; I actually felt like puking at times. "Just tell her how you feel already!"

"She's still in love with the bloodsucker," he whined miserably.

"Kid, that leech has been gone for six months," I snapped back matter of factly and he threw his hands up in the air in exasperation.

"Well tell her that!" Jacob huffed and I laughed lightly.

"Maybe you should show her," I raised my eyebrow at him and he stared at me for a few moments before gauging what I had actually meant. I did feel sorry for this kid; he was falling for a girl that was pining after his sworn enemy. I briefly recalled the night I had rescued Bella from the forest a half year earlier, and quickly sympathised with Jake's efforts to win over the annoying brat; -who had obviously been head over heels for the pretty leech.

"Look, Bella's been having these dreams for the past few months about her using magic and sorcery… What if there's a chance she's a witch like Lily too?"

"It's none of our business Jake, stay out of it," I replied firmly, not particularly concerned by the news of the young girl's dreams.

"But Lily might not know that this magical gene was passed on to Bel…"

"THAT'S AN ORDER JAKE!" I couldn't explain why I was so furious with him, but I hated the idea of him medalling in Lily Swan's business. Jacob stood up from the bar stool behind my kitchen counter to challenge me. He had a scowl on his face and I could tell he wasn't going to back down without a fight on this one. Maybe yelling at my Beta hadn't been the smartest choice.

"What exactly did Lily say to you that night?" Jacob demanded of me, his tone cold and even. It was my turn to sit down at the bench top and start talking.

* * *

_**Flashback; 15 September 1994**_

_I remained where I was around the side of the house, listening to Bella's breathing inside her room above me. I had intended to remain there all evening with the bloodsuckers not that far off. I couldn't smell their sweet scent any more, so I was hoping that meant they had finally disappeared._

_"Goodnight Charlie," Lily called to her brother inside the house as she stepped off the staircase and picked up her keys from the mantle piece inside the living room. Still on the phone to Billy, Charlie called a brief goodbye to his sister as she closed his front door behind her and walked out onto the street, heading towards her apartment._

_I sniffed the air around me and could smell a storm coming in that evening. That was all I needed; to be cold, wet and sick from the evening patrol in the rain. I huffed impatiently; annoyed that there was no practical shelter other than the stupid tree I was standing under. I glanced above me as two squirrels began chirping at each other and scattering about on the branches. I gave a low grumble to shut them up. I hated minute little creatures that got in my way all the time; animals should be large and strong. I smirked in content as the two rodents scampered off higher into the tree, terrified that I would turn them into my dinner. Though, had I not been momentarily distracted by them, I would have heard Lily quickly walk around her brother's house and stop ten metres away from me. _

_"You know, eavesdropping isn't the most polite thing Sam," she called out to me. She didn't look scared, shocked or worried to see a large black wolf standing merely metres away from her. I was the shocked one; how was this even possible? This woman knew I was a wolf, she had known I was listening to their conversation. How much else did she know? "I suggest you change back into your human form so we can have a chat," she stated firmly._

_I hovered where I was; this whole scenario was absurd. I quickly considered pinching myself to see if I was dreaming or imaging things, but I figured that would be slightly difficult in my wolf form. I tilted my head to the side as a show of curiosity and lifted my front paw to take a step forward._

_"Oh no you don't; back up and phase into your human form Sam," Lily commanded. She was scared of me after all. So I figured, I had to be fair; she wanted to talk and I had nothing to fear. I retreated around the back of the sheriff's house and quickly phased back into my dashing human self. I tugged on my black shorts and ruffled my short hair before I trampled out to the side of the house again._

_"I think you have some explaining to do," I called out to her across the backyard, puffing out my bare chest and walking towards her unmoving form._

_"You were the one listening to my conversation with my niece," she challenged playfully. This was one of the first times she and I had actually spoken. Prior to this evening, I hadn't even been sure if she knew my name. She was still the stunning woman I had fantasised over during my adolescence; she just knew about my werewolf secret._

_"How long have you known?" I leaned casually against the trunk of the tree, feigning a cool, relaxed manner. Lily glanced up and down at my posture and smiled. I hoped I was pulling it off well._

_"About the werewolf pack and the vampires in Forks?" she clarified quickly and I nodded once at her, "since the week I arrived here," she replied, the steady tone of her voice unfailing. I was caught completely off guard; how was that even possible?_

_"How?" was all I responded with. I waited patiently, as she sized me up again, deciding whether to confide in me._

_"I'm a witch; I used to practice magic. I could sense the magical presence around all of you," my mind was reeling. I wasn't sure whether to laugh or take a step away from her. Sorcery was an old myth that I had never really believed much in. The tribe's ancestors had told us ancient stories about magic and sorcery, but the newer generations of the pack had never spent much time worrying about it. If this woman told me that dragons and giants were real, I would know she was either lying or delusional._

_"Prove it," I was really trying to keep my cool. I wanted her to like me; to think I was worthy of her company._

_"I haven't practiced magic in fourteen years," she took a step towards me and I didn't feel scared. Some how I knew she wasn't delusional either; I could see it in her eyes. I could sense that she was trustworthy._

_"Why?" I raised an eyebrow at her, curious about her story._

_"A magical tracing charm was placed on me, which will alert a number of people as to my where-abouts, if I perform any magic," she replied with a straight face. I could not understand how this woman was so composed while I was hanging off every word she was saying._

_"You're in hiding?" I quickly gathered and she nodded her head in confirmation. I considered if I ought to be worried; if she was in hiding, there was the chance that she was an evil witch. Maybe the good magical folk were actually trying to locate her. "Who are you hiding from?"_

_"The people who killed my husband," Lily replied evenly before adding, "and the rest of the magical world; they think I'm dead."_

_"Why?" I eagerly asked again; I was absolutely intrigued. So she wasn't an evil witch after all…she had been married. But she had only been twenty-one when she arrived in Forks; maybe the wizarding folk got married at young ages?_

_"I think you know enough now Sam," she responded firmly, "my question to you is; why haven't you attacked me yet?" It was a reasonable question._

_"Because I believe you," I stated sheepishly, Lily nodded and smiled lightly at me. "Why weren't you scared of me when you saw me just now, in wolf form?"_

_"I'm aware that werewolves only attack vampires," she was attractive, captivating and clever. I liked her even more._

_"So you knew your niece was dating a vampire this year?" I queried and she nodded her head twice. "It didn't bother you?"_

_"I think you and I both know that Bella was never really in any danger with the Cullen family. They were good people Sam; Edward was good for her." I hated to admit it, but this woman was right. The vegetarian vampires had never broken their treaty with our tribe. They had never posed a threat to our people or encroached on our land or space. They had even made the effort to walk the other way when they were near us in town. But being a werewolf; it was in my nature to hate them with every fibre of my body. Their presence in this town was triggering the phasing of all our young native boys._

_"This town is better off without them," I replied stubbornly._

_"I don't disagree with you…but you have to admit they were not the horrible bloodsucking monsters that your people have always made them out to be." I cringed to myself; I was starting to hate that this witch was so clever. She was wounding my pride quicker and quicker._

_"How much do you know about my ancestors?"_

_"Enough," she responded and I knew I was not going to get much more out of her._

_"Our secret is safe with you?" I asked curiously._

_"It has been for fourteen years," she stated matter of factly._

_"Who else knows about us?" I asked again, glancing quickly up at the sheriff's house and returning my gaze to her face. It was unlikely that the sheriff knew about the tribe's secret, but there was no harm asking her either._

_"Just myself," Lily responded evenly, tilting her head to one side as I had earlier. She was obviously becoming bored by our conversation._

_"If you've known our secret for fourteen years, why confront me tonight?" Lily smiled and took another few steps towards me._

_"You recovered Bella for us this evening; I owe you. I also respect and trust that you will keep my own secret for me."_

_"Well if I don't, I'll have an attractive witch on my case," I grinned at her._

_"You don't speak like a twenty year old," she watched me very closely. I quickly counted out her approximate age in my head_

_"You don't look like a thirty-five year old," I said charmingly, taking a step closer to her and hoping she would buy it. If there was the slightest possibility that my good looks and alpha voice could win over this woman; I was willing to take it._

_"Are you trying to flirt with a witch Sam?" she raised her eyebrow at me and I knew in that second she was about to shut me down; "because I'm old enough to be your mother."__ That was a rather depressing thought; she would have been a hot mother too._

_"How long do you have to stay in hiding for?" I looked at my feet, changing the subject immediately._

_"It's complicated…" she tried to answer me but simply shook her head in defeat. I smiled at her in understanding; everything was complicated these days. We all lived in a complicated world; magical or not. For whatever it was worth, I was certain I had made a secret ally this evening._

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A/N: **Please please review guys!** I'm seriously counting on the feedback! How did you all like _Chapter Eight?_ I know some of you are irritated with the lack of concern Lily's character is showing for Harry's situation. I'm not sure whether this is because of my writing or because some of you genuinely don't like the character Lily is turning into. But I hope you stick with the story and give it some more time. Also, just a quick apology for jumping all over the place with the the timeline of this story. Hopefully it's not too confusing and you all appreciate the suspense. xx


	9. Cooking Up a Storm

_A/N:_ This is what I would have liked to happen; – had J.K. Rowling's world ever crossed over with Stephanie Meyers'.

Disclaimer: I do not own anything from their creations, besides the following plot. xx

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**Chapter Nine – Cooking Up a Storm**

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_**17 May 1995**_

_**Jacob Black POV**_

There was no doubt that Dad would be happily surprised by his birthday dinner later this evening. Bella was over at our place helping me cook and tidy up for the surprise meal. As I stood in the kitchen chopping up a handful of vegetables, I kept glancing up at Bella across the room, while she laid out place settings on our dining table. I looked over at her long legs, flowing out from beneath her short black and white pleated dress. She looked good with her black high heels on and her long hair tied up in a pony tail. It was as though she had completely changed her style and fashion sense over the past few months. I couldn't complain though; seeing her in short outfits was a plus for me.

"Crap," I glanced down at the growing pool of blood on my chopping board. I had sliced the edge of middle finger.

"You okay?" Bella rushed over and shoved my hand under the tap of cold water. "You're an idiot. Why weren't you concentrating?" She dashed into our bathroom and pulled out a few things from our medicine cabinet and returned to me at the kitchen sink.

"Sorry," I apologised, not really sure what I was apologising for.

"Don't apologise to me you moron," she pulled my hand out from under the stream of water and sprayed it with anti-septic before holding it up to her eyes for inspection. "It's not that deep at all. Plus you'll heal quickly anyway."

"Right…thanks," I stood patiently as my personal nurse continued to look at my finger. "Are you done?" I asked, seeing that there were droplets of blood forming on my finger again. Bella rolled her eyes at me and covered the cut with a bandaid. She then walked over to my chopping board and threw all the pumpkin in the rubbish and washed up the knife and board as I returned the first-aid kit to the bathroom cabinet.

"You can go finish setting the table," she instructed me casually, as I returned to the kitchen. I stood where I was for a few moments watching Bella strut around my dad's kitchen in heels, busy pulling out ingredients from our pantry and fridge. It was a sight I could get used to seeing. She stopped in the middle of the kitchen and turned to face me. "What are you staring at?"

"Nothing; sorry…" I leaped over to the other side of the room so I could continue setting the dining table for Bella.

"For heaven's sakes Jake, stop apologising to me!" she laughed and shook her head at me.

"Sorry…" I mumbled again, but was sure she hadn't heard me. I was losing my head with this girl. The more submissive and accommodating I was towards her, the more irritated she would get with me. Yet when I tried to be dominant and playful with her, she became quiet and subdued around me. I really wasn't sure what to do; I wasn't even entirely sure if she liked me back. She had flirted a lot more these past few months, but she hadn't made a move or admitted any feelings for me. Maybe it was my job to make the move on her; I wished there was some kind of rule book on women!

"Jake what are you doing?" she came over to the dining table chuckling. I glanced up at her to see she had a light playful expression on her face. "Here, let me show you how to set a table." She stepped in front of me and took hold of all the cutlery still in my hands. I could smell her sweet floral perfume on her neck and shoulders and all I wanted to do was lean my lips closer to her bare skin. I followed her around the dining table, not really listening to her instructions about place settings. We were having all the tribal elders for dinner this evening as a surprise to Dad. Our house had not been so tidy or well decorated since my mum was still alive. Bella started to tease me for being so clueless and I reached out to tickle her playfully in retaliation.

"Jake stop!" she squealed as I locked my arms around her waist to prevent her from escaping. I was enjoying her fidgeting and squirming against me.

"Say please," I commanded and she refused, fighting harder to break free. We laughed together as she wriggled and fussed claiming I was an utter nuisance. Eventually she settled down in my arms and for a few moments we stood pressed against each other, staring into each other's eyes. I reached up and placed one of my hands on her cheek and she blushed furiously under my warm touch. I leant in towards her, sure that that was the right moment to make my move. But Bella dropped my gaze and stepped away from my hold.

"I'm going to go have a shower and get ready," I said to her as the tension between us evaporated quickly. "You'll be right with everything in here?" she nodded and smiled at me as I disappeared into the bathroom. I was not sure what had just happened.

During my shower I thought over the past few months I had spent with Bella and everything that had transpired between the two of us. I considered all the flirting, the late nights, the deep conversations and secrets we had shared. I knew I couldn't keep waiting for her to make a move. I was adamant that I would tell her how I felt before the guests had started to arrive this evening. I stepped out of the shower and towelled off before changing into my blue dress shirt and black pants. I checked myself out in the mirror and realised I hadn't put as much effort into my appearance since my sister Rebecca's wedding a few years ago.

As I made my way into the living room to straighten out the furniture, I was sure I was imagining Bella gaping at me from the kitchen bench top. I turned towards her and raised an eyebrow in question, as she continued to glance up and down my body.

"You like what you see?" I teased her lightly, wondering how she would respond.

"Not as much as you like what you see," she raised her eyebrow back at me, and turned towards the pasta sauce she was stirring on the stove. I stood in the middle of my living room completely stunned; this girl was turning me on.

"Oh yeah?" I challenged her with a grin.

"Yeah," she winked back at me and continued stirring on the stovetop.

"I wouldn't be so sure of that Miss Swan," I scoffed at her and went to hang a 'Happy 50th Birthday' banner across our living room wall. I thought by playing hard to get, I would strike a nerve with her. It was only a few moments later that Bella was by my side, assisting me with the banner. She kicked off her heels, and climbed up onto a chair. I gripped her by the waist to prevent her from falling and felt her tense and then relax with the contact. Together we managed to mount it on the wall in a straight position. She finally climbed down and placed her feet back into her black heels.

"I'm going to go check on the roast," she added after we were done, and turned around to walk back to the kitchen.

"Wait," I grabbed her arm and pulled her back towards me abruptly. It was a spirit of the moment move, but I was glad I had done it. Bella collided with my chest, allowing me to quickly wrap an arm around her waist, as I steadied her. "I need to tell you something Bells…"

"Jake…" she breathed, we were literally nose to nose. I raised my pointer finger to her lips to shush her. There was so much colour rushing to her pale cheeks, and her eyes were slowly glazing over as she focused on me.

"I can't stand this anymore…you know how I feel about you," I pleaded desperately with my eyes, hoping she could see how anxious I was. Bella's eyes widened and she started to shake her head at me as though she didn't want me to say anymore.

"Jake, I never…" I didn't give her the chance to think or breathe as I crushed my lips to hers. The taste of her lips sent a current running through my body. It took her a few seconds to get used to it, but Bella melted into my embrace and kissed me back passionately. Before I knew it her hands were locked around the back of my neck and I had her pushed up against the back of our couch. Her soft lips worked furiously against mine, fighting for dominance and urging me on further.

"Calm down tiger," I removed my lips from hers and went to attack her neck. Bella closed her eyes and moaned a few moments later. I was glad I had found her weak spot.

"All I was going to say; was that I never knew how you felt," she mentioned and I stood up straight to look at her.

"Seriously?" I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion. She shook her head with a blank expression on her face.

"I mean…we've been flirting for months but I wasn't sure how you felt and I didn't want to look stupid and make a mo…" I placed both my hands on either side of her face and kissed her tenderly.

"You're so dumb sometimes Bells," she seemed offended for a few seconds but I went back to kissing her neck. She brought my lips back to hers and we kissed for a while longer. It felt amazing to actually hold her and kiss her the way I had dreamt of these past few months.

"Everything okay?" I asked as Bella broke away from me suddenly.

"Yeah, I just…needed to breathe," she smiled and turned away from me, "And check the roast," we chuckled and I took hold of her hand as we walked back towards the stove. Together we danced around each other in the kitchen, hurrying through the few remaining dishes we had to prepare. This mostly consisted of me grabbing hold of her waist every five seconds and pushing her up against the counter to make out. When everything was just about ready I dragged her giggling and screaming back into my room and threw her on my bed and closed the door.

"Jake you'll crease your shirt…" Bella worried as I climbed on top of her and began to kiss her hungrily. Though it was evident neither of us really cared too much about the shirt, as she kicked off her heels and knotted her legs with mine. I pulled her hair out of her high pony tail and began to weave my hands through her long waves. Bella nibbled sensually on my ear and kissed the side of my neck.

"You don't know how long I've wanted to do this Bells," I whispered in her ear. She locked her lips back onto mine and pushed my lips apart with her tongue. I couldn't help but notice how well her body meshed with mine. It was as though there wasn't an inch of space between us, where our bodies didn't meet. Bella climbed on top and straddled my legs as I sat up and trailed kisses down her neck and collar bone. We were too engrossed in exploring each other's bodies to hear my room door swing open. Lily cleared her throat;

"Well you two have certainly been cooking up a storm," she coughed, as Charlie walked up behind her.

"What the bloody hell is going on here?" he yelled angrily. I was dreading the rest of this birthday meal. It was going to be a long night.

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A/N: **Pretty please review guys!** So there we have it; _Chapter Nine_ \- and what a storm it was. Hope you guys enjoyed the suspense and build up between Bella and Jake. Comments and thoughts? xx


	10. Unexpected Visitors to Forks

_A/N:_ This is what I would have liked to happen; – had J.K. Rowling's world ever crossed over with Stephanie Meyers'.

Disclaimer: I do not own anything from their creations, besides the following plot. xx

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**Chapter Ten – Unexpected Visitors to Forks**

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**_24 June 1995_**

**_Lily Potter POV_**

There was an old saying my father always used to state about time flying by when people were having fun. I remember thinking it was so silly growing up; until I realised he was right. My time with James had been cut so short; yet I remember loving mostly every minute of it. There were other moments I had shared with certain friends too, which had flown past so quickly. Afternoons in the park with Severus near Spinners End; study sessions in the library with Remus or even girl time in the Gryffindor common room with Mary and Alice. They were the kind of fun moments that had made me realise time passed by so quickly.

It was nearing nine in the evening, and Bella had spent the whole afternoon laughing and enjoying herself in my apartment with me. Charlie had had a work function in Port Angeles this evening, so I suggested Bella stay over at mine for the night. It was not often she slept over at the apartment, given that Charlie lived so close by. During her younger summers in Forks, I had always stayed at Charlie's place had he been working late or if she required babysitting. Though lately, Bella had barely spent much time around Charlie or I. Her new relationship with Jacob had kept her quite busy; and constantly out on the reservation. Obviously dating a werewolf was a fulltime commitment. As much as I liked Jacob and was thrilled for Bella, I also missed spending time with my niece. Tonight was the perfect chance for us to catch up without Jacob attached to her side.

Earlier in the afternoon, we had assisted Charlie in getting ready for his fancy dinner; picking his shirt, fastening his cuff links and tying his tie for him. He was hopeless with dressing himself for social events; my brother's preferred wardrobe was always his sheriff uniform or his fishing gear. After sending him on his way, and making him promise not to drink while he was out, Bella and I walked back over to my apartment with her overnight bag. We had agreed to cook dinner together, watch a chick flick and give each other makeovers. Having a daughter would be incredible; I envied all those young mothers with teenage daughters to shop, cook and talk with.

As I stood over my stove stirring the chopped vegetables into my sautéed dish, I laughed lightly with Bella as she sat on my couch painting her toe nails. All she had talked about lately was Jacob and their adventures together. The amount of time she was spending down in La Push, had basically wiped the Cullen family from her mind. From cliff diving, to camping and hiking trips in the forest, Bella had story after story about the La Push kids. I wasn't entirely thrilled to hear that she was dirt bike riding with Jacob though. Or that they were becoming more physical with each other either. It didn't help that I also knew Jacob was climbing into Bella's room every night, just as Edward had. Then again, Edward had been too old-fashioned for me to have even worried about him sleeping with Bella. But I suppose it wasn't really my place to interfere. James and I had started having sex when we were sixteen, and Bella was already eighteen. I sighed to my self realising that age and maturity had made me responsible and conservative. Maybe the worry and paranoia just came with being a parent or guardian. I wondered if I needed to talk to her about contraception; I really didn't think I'd need to, she was already eighteen and she wasn't stupid either. I couldn't believe how time had flown so quickly; Bella had been four years old when I had moved to Forks in hiding. I glanced over at the young woman sitting on my couch and smiled fondly.

"Hey Tink, can you set the table for dinner when your toes dry?"

"Yep sure," she started blowing on her toes for a few minutes and then got up to set my dining table. Maybe I needed to stop calling her 'Tink' as well, just as I had when she was a child. I rolled my eyes at myself and tried to think back to when I had been eighteen and how annoyed I'd get at the adults in my life for treating me like a kid. I didn't want to be the condescending, paranoid, uncool aunt in Bella's life.

Together we sat down to my sautéed stir-fry and began to chat about plans for Charlie's upcoming birthday. Bella talked animatedly about having a surprise barbeque for him down in La Push. Naturally that was where she would want it; I'm sure my niece would go and live out there if she could. Jacob had obviously opened up to her about the wolf pack and everything else that went on down at the beach, such as the tribal meetings, wolf patrols and training as well as the continuous parties, barbeques and massive meals. What amused me was the fact that her deception and manipulation skills had improved. Over the past two months, I had witnessed countless conversations between her and Charlie in which she had talked her way out of breaking her curfew, or convinced him to allow her to stay out overnight at her boyfriend's house. I couldn't believe how soft Charlie had become, nor could I believe how quick-tongued Bella was either. Though, I suppose having two mythical creatures as boyfriends, would certainly give you an edge on keeping secrets and lying. Again, it hadn't been my place to interfere with her rule-breaking or to clue Charlie in either. I suppose the fact was; I trusted Jacob, and I trusted Sam. After Bella and I finished our dinner, we quickly washed up the dishes and decided to give Bella a haircut

"Maybe layers and a side fringe, but I'm not sure," she was skimming through photos on her laptop for ideas.

"I think that would look nice Bells, I like your length the way it is," I commented running my fingers through her long strands.

"Yeah I don't think I'd like it any shorter," she mumbled absently still flicking through photos.

"I'll go get my scissors and comb," I left her on the couch and ran up to my room to fetch what I needed to cut Bella's hair. Spending fourteen years in hiding had given me the free time and space to achieve a number of things with my life. When I wasn't at work or with Charlie or Remus, I had spent my time learning new things and perfecting some of my hobbies. Taking a short course in hair dressing had been one of them. I had also learnt to play the piano extremely well, taken a master cooking class, a ballroom dancing class and a two year sewing course as well.

As I entered my room, I caught sight of the hamper of wizard treats that Remus had bought me six months earlier, in the corner. The morning after Christmas, I had made Remus promise to return to Forks frequently, so that he could bring me more wizarding sweets. Considering the fact he never broke his promises, I had seen him every three to four weeks since Christmas. When I had asked him to keep replenishing my stash of sweets, I hadn't actually meant it. I'd really just wanted to see him more often than usual and I had also wanted to remain updated with Harry and the Triwizard Tournament. Though Remus, being the sweetheart that he was; had kept my colourful hamper of sweets overflowing this past half year. I walked over to the colourful box and opened the lid, feeling like a quick dose of sugar. Besides the chocolate frogs and Bertie Bott's Beans, there were also a handful of sugar-spun quills, exploding bonbons, fizzing whizzbees and creaming nougats. I closed the lid realising it probably wasn't wise eating any of them with Bella downstairs. I sighed to myself missing Remus. It had been nearly a month since I'd seen him; things were obviously keeping him busy in the wizarding world.

I grabbed my hairdressing kit from my cupboard and returned to Bella downstairs. She happily showed me a picture on her laptop of a long layered haircut she fancied. We pulled a chair into my downstairs bathroom and I set to work on her beautiful hair. After an hour or so, I managed to finish layering her side fringe.

"There you go, no more split ends Bells. And your fringe is just short enough to not fall into your eyes and annoy you," I smiled happily, pleased with my work. I spent ten minutes blow drying her hair for her and she squealed in delight.

"I love it, I absolutely love it Aunt Lils, thank you" she kissed me on the cheek and then stood in front of my mirror for the next five to ten minutes. She played with her hair, experimenting with it in different partings, up-dos and styles. I wasn't sure if she was the same tom-boy that had been living under Charlie's roof the previous year. While she had been with Edward, she had not been concerned at all with her appearance. In actual fact, before Jacob and she had become friends, I had never seen Bella in a dress, with make up on or even in heels. I chuckled to myself as I cleaned up the bathroom floor around her feet with my broomstick, sweeping all her hair into a dustpan. I started wishing I could practice magic again. I had even read a charm in The Standard Book of Spells last night that made broomsticks sweep up for you. I huffed in frustration; I couldn't wait to use my wand again.

"You okay Aunt Lils?" Bella asked in response to my huffing, "oh here let me do that for you!" she took the broom from my hand and cleaned up the remainder of the bathroom for me while I made up her guest bedroom. After we were both done clearing up we agreed to watch a movie together on the couch. I grabbed one of the bigger quilts from upstairs and curled up with Bella on the couch under it. She had set up the DVD player for us and the opening adverts to the movie had already started.

"So what are we watching?" I asked casually.

"You'll see," she giggled lightly. Within a few moments the beginning of Disney's 'Peter Pan' had begun. I tickled Bella under the quilt.

"Aren't you a little old for this movie Tink?" she squirmed and laughed with me.

"Never," she answered playfully. When Bella had been much younger, she and I had always curled up on the couch together and watched a heap of the Disney classics. I remember pulling her onto my lap and sitting through one after another of the Princess movies; Cinderella, Snow White, Little Mermaid…the list went on. But Bella's favourite film had always been Peter Pan. She would wish she was Wendy, and that she would fly off to Neverland and stay young forever with Peter. I chuckled at the memory, comparing it to her reality, in which she had started dating a vampire who would eventually fly her off to another country to escape the treaty here in America, allowing her to stay young forever with immortality. I used to say to Bella, that if she flew off with Peter she would leave me behind, and that would make me cry. So she had said I could come with her and just be Tinkerbell. I told her I would happily come with her to Neverland if I was allowed to be Wendy, and she would be Tinkerbell. At the age of five, my young niece had happily agreed to the trade and since then, my nickname for her had always been Tinkerbella.

"I think we should buy Charlie a dog like 'Nana,' it might do him some good," Bella commented, her eyes glued to the television screen. I thought about it for a few minutes and realised Bella was onto something.

"Maybe it would be a good birthday gift for him," I added as we continued to watch the film in silence. Halfway through the film Bella rested her head on my shoulder and I began to stroke her hair absently. The movie continued on for a little while longer before I heard a loud pop in my kitchen. Bella and I both looked up to see a frightened Remus standing in front of my fridge.

"What the..?" Bella jumped up terrified of what she had just seen. Before I could reach out for her, Remus had muttered "obliviate" and knocked her out with a sleeping spell. Bella fell with a thud to my tiled floor.

"Bella," I yelled rushing over to her.

"I'm so sorry Lils, I didn't know she'd be here," he ran over to where I was crouched over my niece.

"I hope she didn't hurt herself when she fell," I said horrified, glancing at the clock on my kitchen wall. It was just after one in the morning.

"No she wouldn't have; the sleeping charm masks all that," Remus reassured me hurriedly. He looked terrible, absolutely terrible; probably as bad as he looked after a full moon. Sparing no time at all, Remus pointed his wand at Bella and levitated her upstairs.

"What the hell are you doing?" I asked quickly, not even sure why he was here.

"I have to talk to you immediately, where can I put her?" Remus spluttered out anxiously and I became scared. I told him to put her in the guestroom upstairs. I followed him upstairs with the quilt and draped it over Bella on the guest bed. Remus doubled his sleeping charm so she would remain in her slumber until the later hours of the morning. I closed her room door and was about to follow Remus downstairs when he stopped me.

"Where's your wand Lily?" I frowned at him. He never called me Lily, and I wondered why the hell he was asking after my wand.

"In my r…" he cut me off in a second.

"Get it. NOW!" I started breathing quickly and dashed into my room to retrieve my wand from behind a large picture frame of James and I on our wedding day. The second I came out of my room, Remus grabbed my hand and dragged me downstairs. The second we stepped off the staircase, I turned to him to ask what the hell was going on but Remus cut me off;

"You need to cast an Intruder or Caterwauling Charm," he commanded quickly. I stared at my old friend as though he was speaking another language. Had he lost his mind? He knew I couldn't perform any magic… "Lily, He Who Must Not Be Named has risen again…cast a charm _now_." I stared at Remus in disbelief. I could not comprehend what he was saying. Without wasting a second, he walked right up to me and shook me violently by the shoulders. "Snap out of it Lils; we don't have time for one of your break downs! You can practice magic again; he's come back to life. _Cast a spell NOW!_" Remus yelled and then mumbled out the incantation for me. I repeated it absently, holding out my wand and feeling the power surge through my body for the first time in years. There was a burst of light from the tip of my wooden stick, and after a second or so, I had a faint sense of security running through my body. I had never noticed that feeling before with spells or charms…

"He came back to power this evening Lils," Remus relaxed a little. We stood in the middle of my living room, where we had danced on Christmas night. "He nearly killed Harry in his final task of the Tournament. Harry managed to hold his own and get himself out of there before anything happened. Wormtail was with him too; according to Harry, Peter was the one who resurrected him. But he knows you're alive now…Vol" Remus paused, "He knows you didn't die that night Lils…"

"Rem?" I squeaked inaudibly and he rushed over and held me. We squeezed each other in fear and for comfort. "I can't believe this is happening." Remus ran his hand through my hair affectionately. We stood in the middle of my living room for possibly an hour, both our wands clasped tightly in our hands. Neither of us moved; neither of us spoke; neither of us cried.

"It's going to be okay Lils, Harry's okay. He's alive," Remus finally broke the silence.

"But how did Voldem…"

"DON'T! There could be a trace on the name…don't say it," Remus reacted quickly and then grabbed hold of me again.

"How did he find out?" I whispered into his shoulder. Remus knew exactly what I was referring to.

"We suspect he used Legilimency on Wormtail after he came back to power, and saw you in his mind…He's got some of his Death Eaters out looking for you right now."

"And Harry?"

"He's safe for now Lily, leave him to Dumbledore."

"What are we all going to do?" I sobbed into his chest miserably and he rested his head on mine. A few minutes later there was another loud pop in my kitchen. Remus and I immediately raised our wands in that direction, to find Severus Snape standing there.

"Severus what are you doing here?" I gasped in shock.

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A/N: **Pretty please REVIEW guys!** What did you think of _Chapter Ten_? Definitely a new turn of events; poor Bella getting caught up in the heat of things and being sent to bed! But on another note; after fourteen years, Lily can use magic again. And finally... another Harry Potter character in Forks! What do you think Severus wants from Lily? xx**  
**


	11. The First Endless Night Pt1

_A/N:_ This is what I would have liked to happen; – had J.K. Rowling's world ever crossed over with Stephanie Meyers'.

Disclaimer: I do not own anything from their creations, besides the following plot. xx

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**Chapter Eleven – The First Endless Night Pt.1**

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_**31 October 1981**_

_**Albus Dumbledore POV**_

_**Flashback;**_

_It was only natural to be indecisive about something like this. I paced my office anxiously, clutching tightly to the piece of parchment with the slender elegant penmanship on it. I had received an owl from one of my former students minutes earlier, - a student I would've been glad to never hear from again. Desperately, I glanced up at the portraits surrounding my office, each distinguished face shaking their head in disapproval. It was all it took to make up my mind; I was going to meet with this young man. Continuing to pace the room for a few more minutes, I realised my curiosity would eventually get the better of me if I were not to go. Without a seconds warning, I gathered up my cloak and wand, before spinning on the spot and landing with a blinding flash of light on the windy hilltop. It took a moment for my eyes to adjust to the darkness, but after a second or so, I could see the hill was isolated from any trees or natural surroundings. I absolutely despised terrible gusty weather, and I could sense that tonight was going to be nothing short of a storm._

_Further down the hill, the adult Severus Snape stood frantically glancing around himself as if he were about to be ambushed. The sound of my appearance froze him into a frightened stillness and all he could do was stare up at my hooded figure; I was his former Headmaster. I quickly disarmed him of his wand, and caught it as it flew up the hill towards me. Severus seemed to accept that I had disarmed him, so I cautiously summoned the younger man forward with two fingers. I watched silently as he climbed up towards me. I was rather annoyed at myself that I had not yet figured out the reason for this Death Eater's request to meet. Severus was panting as he reached the top, glancing around in the dark. I could tell, he was wondering if he had made the right decision coming to me. It made me that much more curious; I was intrigued. The young man standing in front of me did not want to be here; yet for some reason he needed to be._

_"Well Severus? What message does Lord Voldemort have for me?" I spoke out breaking the stormy silence._

_"No – no message – I'm here on my own account! I'm here with a request," he panted out and eagerly awaited my response. _

_"What request could a Death Eater make of me?" I roared against the gusty breeze, my stern demeanour frightening Severus further._

_"The – the prophecy… the prediction … Trelawney…" rasped Severus desperately._

_"Ah, yes," I said, still having no clue where this conversation was going. "How much did you relay to Lord Voldemort?"_

_"Everything – everything I heard!" said Severus miserably. "That is why – it is for that reason – he thinks it means Lily Evans, her son!"_

_"James and Lily Potter are in hiding, their son is perfectly safe," Snape cringed at the use of Lily's new married name. _

_"No! You don't understand sir – the Dark Lord was approached by their Secret Keeper not an hour ago," Severus gushed out desperately, and for the first time in weeks, I felt cold. I could not imagine Sirius Black ever betraying James or Lily, not in a million years. Though some how, deep down, I knew their location had been divulged to Tom Riddle. And with that, I panicked; I realised they had no time left._

_"Has Lord Voldemort acted on this information as yet?" I asked the man icily._

_"No, but he intends to do so before this night is over," the young Death Eater cried helplessly. I thought quickly, while I continued to extract any information I could._

_"If she means so much to you," I began hesitantly, "surely Lord Voldemort will spare her? Could you not ask for mercy for the mother, in exchange for the son?"_

_"I have – I have asked him –"_

_"You disgust me Severus"' I interrupted him, speaking with much contempt in my voice. Snape seemed to shrink further into the ground. "You do not care about the deaths of her husband and child? They can die, as long as you have what you want?" I asked rhetorically. The thin miserable man looked up desperately at me;_

_"Hide them all then," he croaked. "Keep her – them – safe. Please."_

_"And what will you give me in return, Severus?" I was plucking ideas out of the sky, thinking on the spot, as every second ticked by._

_"In return?" Snape gaped at me, ready to protest, but after a long moment he must have thought better of it and replied, "Anything."_

_"You will swear your loyalty to me, as of tonight?" I questioned and tilted my head impatiently as the other man hesitated._

_"Yes – if you protect her. Yes – I will." I stepped forward and handed his wand to him. I surveyed Snape's trembling form one last time before I Apparated back to my office, leaving the Death Eater with a single parting instruction;_

_"I will be in touch Severus, be mindful of your thoughts from here on."_

_The moment my soles touched the carpeted floor of my office, I leaped over to the fireplace and Flooed yet another of my former students. The second younger male was equally as surprised to hear from me, as I had been to hear from Severus. Within moments the two of us were seated on either side of my desk, discussing the most successful plan of action._

_"Sir, are you sure we can trust Snape?" he asked worriedly._

_"I am certain, the question is; are you able to do what I have asked of you?" the man in front of me rubbed his arms and hung his head miserably. He was aware we had not a minute to spare with three lives depending on our discretion and haste. Though I could understand he also needed a minute to process some of the information I had disclosed to him. At twenty-one years of age, he had seen his fair share of darkness and loss in the Wizarding World, yet this decision was one that would haunt him every day, for the remainder of his life. Times were dark, and desperate measures were being taken by every witch, wizard and family. As much as the man in front of me understood the reasoning behind my request, I'm sure he could not comprehend the fact that it was being asked of him, or even the fact that it was being asked altogether. Neither of us could believe Sirius Black had betrayed James and Lily._

_"But Professor, why me?" he asked miserably._

_"Because you love her, just as much – if not more than James."_

_"Professor – I,"_

_"I would not be asking this of you, if there were any other way. You are definitely one of their Secondary Keepers?" I pushed forward with him. We had no time to feel guilty or become emotional._

_"I understand sir; Yes I am," he whispered grimly._

_"Swear to me, you will follow my instructions exactly?" I asked again, handing the invisibility cloak across the table to him._

_"I swear sir, to the best of my ability."_

_"I am sorry to place this burden on you," I stood up from behind my desk and turned my back on the young man. Gazing out my office window into the night sky, I was terrified of what was to come._

_"Sir, there is no adequate apology, for asking me to save Lily's life over James', I do not mean to be disrespectful," and with that Remus Lupin grasped a handful of Floo powder and disappeared to Godric's Hollow, leaving me feeling quite ashamed of myself._

_The following forty minutes presented to be the most excruciatingly difficult moments of my life. Not knowing whether the young Lily and James Potter were alive, not knowing whether their infant; Harry, the Chosen One had survived Tom Riddle's attack and not knowing whether Remus Lupin had followed my instructions or jeopardised the whole plan. I paced my office, back and forth, before deciding I had far more important things to do than lose my mind. I summoned a house elf into my office, and requested the small creature locate my Deputy Headmistress; Minerva McGonagall immediately. After a few more paces of my office, I hadn't managed to shake the thought of Sirius Black's betrayal, and knew my mind would not be at peace unless I knew for certain. Striding over to my fireplace I Flooed the eldest Black son, and requested his presence in my office. A bewildered Sirius stepped out of the fireplace and quickly became infuriated by my tone of questioning. Unlike my usual self, I was not being tactful; I was panicking and I was furious._

_"Old man, if you have something to say, you had bloody well better say it fast," spat Sirius, obviously wondering what in Merlin's name was going on. Moments later Professor McGonagall entered the office, and demanded an explanation to the commotion in front of her._

_"Did you or did you not sell out Lily and James to Lord Voldemort earlier this evening?" I demanded angrily. It took the three of us a matter of minutes to establish that Sirius had not been the primary Secret Keeper as to the Potter's whereabouts, and that young Peter Pettigrew had taken on that responsibility of the Fidelius Charm. McGonagall was beside herself; I had never seen her in such a state, nor had she ever seen me as alarmed as I was. Naturally, Sirius was outraged with the discovery of Wormtail's betrayal of Padfoot and was ready to Apparate out of the office and slaughter his former friend. Though, thankfully within moments Remus appeared in the middle of the office, supporting a distraught Lily. The second Lily landed in my office she flung herself out of Remus' grasp and began yelling as many insufferable torments at him as she could manage, as he had just removed her from her son's side._

_"Harry is still IN THERE! We have to GO BACK," she screamed at Remus, not realising the two of them had company. Remus nodded at me dismally and then caught sight of Sirius standing in the corner._

_"YOU!" Remus raised his wand and cast a stunning spell at his friend furiously, which I quickly blocked, before throwing up a shield between Sirius and Remus._

_"Remus, calm down it was not Sirius who sold out James, but Peter – he was their Secret Keeper." I quickly explained and then beckoned McGonagall over to my side. We could both see the anger and tension between the two old friends. Lily on the other hand, was ready to attack anyone who got in her way of rescuing her son. I quietly instructed my Deputy to take our Groundskeeper; Hagrid and retrieve the young infant from Godric's Hollow. She Disapparated without a word from my side, leaving me with the three friends._

_"Where is James? Harry?" Sirius yelled at everyone frantically. Lily having noticed her surroundings, answered in tears._

_"James is dead, Voldemort killed him on sight," she sobbed, "Headmaster, I need to get back to Harry!" she yelled again desperately. "Let me out of here," she whined miserably, as she tried to Apparate out of the office but failed, as my anti-apparation jinx prevented her from doing so._

_"No," I said sternly. Lily's facial expression changed from agony, to confusion and distress, to sheer anger in less than half a second._

_"What do you mean, no?" she screamed at me and ran straight for the door; which was the only other way out of my office. By this stage Sirius had also attempted to Apparate out of the room to go after Wormtail, and had been trapped by the jinx. This seriously angered him and he too was causing his own racquet. _

_"Lily, calm down please?" Remus begged and begged again, though there was no reasoning with the distressed mother._

_"LILY," I roared, silencing the room. "ENOUGH! Harry is being looked after," I said clearly and summoned a chair from thin air. Pointing my wand at the infuriated mother, I levitated her back across the room and then charmed her to the chair. Lily blinked in confusion, before realising I had forced her to sit upon the chair obediently. The second she tried to stand, her legs and backside were forced back down by magic._

_"Let her go Professor; let us go to Harry!" Sirius yelled in defence of Lily._

_"Mr. Black I suggest you find a chair and sit down as well, unless you want me to organise it for you," I whispered in frustration and exhaustion. I spent the next five minutes, promising over and over again that young Harry was indeed safe, to Lily and Sirius. It seemed as though there was no reasoning with the two friends. After finally convincing them both that that Harry was being retrieved by Professor McGonagall, I conjured up a pot of tea to calm down and soothe the three Order members. Lupin too was feeling the fatigue, and pulled up a chair next to Lily's and collapsed helplessly, awaiting further instruction from me._

_The three friends sat unemotionally, some what sedately on the other side of my desk, reflecting over the evening's events. Not one of them had been expecting the attack or betrayal, the loss or turn of the night. I watched sadly as tear after tear rolled from each of their eyes across my desk. I could not help myself either, James Potter had not been a mere student of mine, he had been a friend and fellow member of The Order._

_Remus and I watched as Sirius stood quickly and dropped to Lily's feet and broke down despairingly in her lap. The two remained there, holding onto each other for what seemed like dear life. It was a heartbreaking sight for me; I could feel each of their pain and loss for what it was; the loss of a dear friend, a husband, and a truly good man._

_Knowing they needed to grieve properly, I gave them as much time as I could afford, before instructing them further for that night. I really hadn't wanted to separate the three friends from each other, but for the safety of little Harry Potter, it had to be done. After much protestation, Sirius agreed that he would eventually be tried by the Ministry, and found guilty of the staged murder of Pettigrew, the murder of twelve muggles as well as the betrayal of the Potter's hideout. In turn he would be sentenced to life imprisonment in Azkaban. Lily angrily protested alongside Sirius and refused to allow James' best mate to rot away in the Wizarding prison._

_"Who do you think you are? You have no right Dumbledore!" she yelled angrily from her chair, still restrained by my obedience charm._

_"Lily hush," Remus tried to reason with his old friend again._

_"Shut up Moony, you'll be lucky if I ever speak with you again," the woman snapped at him. I felt sorry for the man; his love for her would surely ruin him. Lily rounded on me hastily;_

_"I want to see Harry NOW! And you WILL find another future for Sirius; he will not go to Azkaban for Peter's crimes…" her voice broke at the mention of Wormtail._

_"I understand how you must be feeling Lily dear," I tried to soothe calmly._

_"DO NOT CALL ME DEAR," she screamed at me. My heart broke into a million pieces; she was not the bright and brilliant Head Girl from Gryffindor I knew. The Lily Potter sitting before me would slowly break into a million pieces over the years to come. She would never have the same spirit she had in her youth or compassion for her fellow peers. She would lead a lonely life of misery and abandonment; just as Sirius would in Azkaban; and just as Harry would in his new home. Lily would not get the chance to be a mother to her son; to raise him and care for him. If I could hate myself for anything I had done in this world; it would be for separating Lily from her son; for sending Sirius to Azkaban; and for persuading Remus to save Lily's life over James'. Tonight was the first of many endless nights to come for these three friends; it would be the night we would all dream about in our sleep only to wake up in sheer agony._

_"Please understand Lily…" I tried to reason with her._

_"No, there is NO understanding any of this Dumbledore," she cut me off furiously. Remus remained quietly in his seat beside Lily, bewildered with the way she was speaking to me. There was no questioning it; I had lost every last inch of respect from this woman within the past hour. Sirius stood up from the floor by Lily's feet and went to stand behind her chair loyally. I could see deep within his eyes, he was in the midst of comprehending my need for him to go to Azkaban. I let out the briefest sigh of relief; Sirius was going to give in._

_"Dumbledore…" he began hesitantly and I saw Lily's eyes widen in shock._

_"YOU ARE NOT GOING TO PRISON," she cut him off as she turned around in her seat to face him angrily._

_"Lils, you can't save all of us…" Sirius responded in defeat. A second later Lily had reached up and slapped Padfoot across the face. Sirius stood where he was in shock before bending down and wrapping his arms sadly around Lily's shoulders, as they broke down a second time for the night._

_The atmosphere in the room was tense and heavy. After Sirius' surrender it seemed as though the three friends had lost any will to move forward with their lives, they were merely accepting the fates I was handing to them. I explained to Sirius, a time would come in which he would be able to escape the prison. Until then he would abide by his sentencing in the interest of Harry. After another few minutes, I then instructed Remus to escort Lily to her elder brother's house in Forks, Washington. Lily looked up in surprise at this new establishment, clearly wondering why on earth I was sending her there._

_"Lily, I am not able to explain to you right now the reason why…but for many reasons, you will not be allowed to see Harry for a very long time." Lily yelled and screamed for a good few minutes more, before I cast a silencing charm on her and continued to explain that it was for the young boy's safety, that in time she would be reunited with her son – once Lord Voldemort had risen again._

_I originally had had no intention of relaying the entire prophecy to Lily and James Potter. I had merely sent them into hiding, claiming that the Dark Lord was after them because they had defied him multiple times. Though, given the circumstance that Lily and the other two friends were in, I knew I owed them some more information. I went on and explained to them my encounter with Sybill Trelawney and the prophecy the young Seer had made; reciting it from my memory, to them;_

_'The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches…Born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies…and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not…and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives…The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies…'_

_The three friends sat bewildered and horrified with the news that the Dark Lord would return to power, and little Harry would be the only one to kill him. Lily and Sirius looked like they were going to be sick. I had just told a mother that her son had a dangerous destiny ahead of him; a destiny that she could not shelter him from. I could only imagine the distressing thoughts going through all of their heads. _

_Unfortunately for them, time was ticking on and I needed all three of them absent from my office, as I had other matters to attend to that evening. I instructed Sirius to return to his cottage alone and that he would be arrested later that hour. Allowing them their emotional farewell, I waited patiently as the three friends embraced fondly. Lupin then gripped Lily's arm, ready to Apparate her to Forks._

_"Headmaster; Snape thinks she's dead," Remus commented finally._

_"Good; he is not to know she survived," I gazed out my window onto the dark grounds below me, "No one is to know Lily survived, besides the three of us, and Professor McGonagall." With that Lily and Remus disappeared from the tense office, as did Sirius moments later._

_I sighed sadly to myself, remembering how the young Marauders and Lily would run down the school corridors together, laughing and smiling. The turn of the evening had been truly saddening, it left me feeling empty inside. The five friends together, had inspired much hope and spirit in their fellow peers, teachers and Order members. I just hoped that the remaining friends would manage to overcome their loss together over the years and unite in their desperate need to protect Harry._

_Returning to reality, I shook my thoughts out of my head and picked up my quill. I began writing a lengthy letter of explanation to a very petulant, Petunia Dursley. The one year old boy had no other option, than to be left in his Aunt's care. Given that Remus had executed my plan successfully and saved both Harry and Lily earlier this evening, there was no other alternative for the boy. Harry Potter would spend majority of his life growing up without parents. Quickly recalling my few encounters with the eldest Evan's sister, I felt guilty for subjecting Harry to the kind of life he would lead under her care. But the fact remained; Lily had no other blood relatives other than her elder brother and sister._

_"I thought…you were going…to keep her…safe," Severus Snape Apparated into the centre of my office, intoxicated and an absolute mess. He sobbed heavily and collapsed onto my carpeted floor. Swiftly I jumped to my feet and walked around my desk towards him._

_"She and James put their faith in the wrong person," I replied evenly. "Rather like you, Severus. Weren't you hoping that Lord Voldemort would spare her?"_

_"YOU were supposed to save her…" he cried angrily. It had been years since a fellow wizard had raised their voice to me. Tonight alone, Sirius, Lily and Severus had all furiously voiced their opinions and anger towards me. It was a terrible sensation; I felt like I deserved to crawl up into corner._

_"Her boy survived. He has her eyes, precisely her eyes. You remember the shape and colour of Lily Evans's eyes. I am sure?"_

_"DON'T!" bellowed Snape. I backed away from the man curled up on my floor quickly and returned to my desk drawers. I pulled out a small photo James had sent me months ago, of the young Harry playing around on the grass outside Godric's Hollow. Walking back towards Severus, I hoped against all odds he would agree to be a spy for me, whenever the Dark Lord rose again._

_"The Dark Lord will return Severus, and Harry Potter will be in terrible danger when he does," I shoved the moving photo before the Death Eater's eyes and watched quietly as his face brightened with recognition. "If you loved Lily Evans, if you truly loved her, then your way forward is clear." It wasn't long before Severus agreed to become the new Potions Master at Hogwarts under my supervision, as well as a secret spy for The Order. He left my office miserably; but with a purpose and new resolve. _

_I returned to my desk rather satisfied. Reasoning with the Death Eater had been easier than I had anticipated. Once I had completed my necessary spiel to Petunia on the parchment, I gathered my cloak and wand for the second time that evening and Apparated to Privet Drive, Little Whinging. I met with Professor McGonagall and my favourite Groundskeeper._

_"Hagrid," I said relieved, as he landed across the street. "At last. And where did you get that motorbike?"_

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A/N: **Firstly**** please REVIEW guys!** I'm dying to hear what you all think of _Chapter Eleven_. And secondly, I really hope you guys found this chapter interesting, please remember that this is only MY version of what I'd like to have happened. I am trying to give you all something to appreciate :D sincere apologies that it is coming together so slowly. For all the Lily fans out there, HANG IN THERE! And to all those readers who are disgusted by Lily's lack of concern for her son and overall worry for her niece... I hope this chapter has given you a slight change of heart **! ** xx


	12. The First Endless Night Pt2

_A/N:_ This is what I would have liked to happen; – had J.K. Rowling's world ever crossed over with Stephanie Meyers'.

Hey guys, I just want to quickly apologise to readers who have waited patiently for the update of this story. I absolutely hated writing this chapter, it was literally giving me nightmares, so I continued to change it and make it less and less dark. I've also made a few changes to previous chapters, if any of you would like to flip back and refresh your memory ! Again, my sincere apologies but I hope you enjoy ;)

Disclaimer: I do not own anything from their creations, besides the following plot. xx

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**Chapter Twelve – The First Endless Night Pt.2**

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_**31 October 1981**_

_**Remus Lupin POV**_

_**Flashback;  
**_

_As I stood in my old Headmaster's enchanted office, I marvelled at how everything had escalated so significantly during this damn war. It felt like it was only yesterday that I stood in the exact same spot with James and Sirius, as Dumbledore sat quietly contemplating a punishment for yet another of our stupid pranks. Upon graduation, we Mauraders swiftly joined The Order along with Lily, to assist in the fight against Lord Voldemort. I shook my head to myself as Dumbledore rattled on about his plan of action; I had completely tuned him out. The whole situation was surreal to me; how was any of this even happening? The old man behind the desk continued to speak and I tried my best to focus my attention on him; but I couldn't. My head was off reminiscing about my time spent at Hogwarts, with the boys and Lily._

_Glancing quickly outside the small office window, I realised it was pitch black out there and that time was ticking on. How did Dumbledore have so much to say? I had not even heard half of what he had said, from the moment he mentioned Sirius' betrayal of Lily and James. Again, the whole thing just seemed unbelievable to me. I raised my eyebrow in curiosity when Dumbledore mentioned something about a spell that could bring people back to life, and a prophecy to do with Harry. I tuned back in to his ridiculous plan for all of twenty seconds, before I allowed my mind to wander off and continue reminiscing about study sessions in the library with Lily. I thought about all the times the boys and I would run down the school corridors causing chaos for the professors. I smiled to myself as I remembered some of the warmer months at school, which we would all sit out on the school grounds and enjoy our lunch together or study under the sun._

"_Swear to me, you will follow my instructions exactly?" Dumbledore repeated himself impatiently, breaking me out of my reverie and passing the invisibility cloak across his desk towards me. I quickly cleared my head of previous thoughts and actually considered everything he had just said to me. My mind started to spin and I felt a wave of pain and guilt hit me like a tsunami, as the reality of the situation came crashing down on me._

"_I swear sir, to the best of my ability," I replied, hearing the quiver in my own voice. _

"_I am sorry to place this burden on you," my old Headmaster stood from behind his desk and turned his back on me. I couldn't explain why; but I was infuriated by this. I was infuriated with the entirety of what he had said to me. Could all this really be happening? Was Dumbledore really taking Snape's word and blaming Sirius for James' fate? I was so sure Padfoot would give his own life to save James'. I glared angrily at my old Headmaster's back, as he stared out his office window into the evening sky. _

_He had divulged such shocking information to me moments earlier, and had all but asked me to stand back and watch my best mate die. Part of me was sure that this was all a sick dream in my head, and the other part of me was certain I was about to live through my ultimate fear. A decision I had avoided making for possibly nine years of my life; the choice between my love for Lily and my friendship with James. It was this same decision that would now end one of their lives. I felt sick; actually I was beyond sick. Spewing out my guts, could not rid me of the swirling pit of disgust that was boiling up within me. The respect and admiration I had once had for Albus Dumbledore had flown out the window along with all the hope for a peaceful end to this dark war._

"_Sir, there is no adequate apology, for asking me to save Lily's life over James', I do not mean to be disrespectful," I responded with as much contempt entwined with respect that I could manage and with that I grasped a handful of Floo powder and disappeared from his presence._

_The fast swooshing through the Floo network always disorientated me. I squeezed my eyelids shut and held firmly to the silky fabric of the invisibility cloak for another minute or so, before I landed heavily in the upstairs fireplace of Godric's Hollow. I cringed quickly at the thud of my appearance, realising Lily and James would have heard it too. I stood instantly, threw the cloak over my head and cleaned up all the soot from the fireplace and floor around me, with a quiet 'scourgify.' I then gently removed the dustpan and broom stick from near the fireplace and laid them haphazardly on the floor in front of me._

"_James! Upstairs…" Lily cried in panic from somewhere downstairs, as James was already dashing up the carpeted staircase towards the landing I was standing on. I quickly took a few steps to the side, entering a small living room and then found a corner to stand quietly in. The tension and fear was thick in the air; Lily and James were petrified. I felt so guilty adding to their fear, with my arrival upstairs – but at the end of tonight, at least one of them would be able to look back and be grateful for their life. _

"_It was only the dustpan and broom," James responded in relief, his deep voice shaking uncontrollably. I closed my eyes as the tears slowly began running down my cheeks. I had never seen James give in to fear or alarm before, nor had I heard him express such terror in his life. I counted to five in my head, before I reopened my eyes and adjusted them to the darkness of the room around me. James had already disappeared downstairs to comfort Lily and baby Harry. I took a few deep breaths, reminding myself of why I was there and recalled everything else Dumbledore had said earlier. I reached up and wiped the tears off of my face and took a quiet step out into the upstairs hallway._

_From over the banister railing, I could see Lily and James huddled on the couch together with Harry. Dumbledore had given me strict instructions, not to alert my friends of my presence in their home. So I stood there anxiously, waiting for some indication of what my next move was. I silently cursed myself, and wished I'd paid closer attention to my instructions earlier, instead of being an arrogant fool and assuming I could barge in here and save all their lives._

"_Can I make you a cup of tea?" James tried desperately to even out his voice as he spoke to Lily, trying to reassure and comfort her. She shook her head kindly and smiled over at James. I watched silently from upstairs, as he returned her smile though the warmth did not reach either of their eyes. James bent down to the foot of the couch and picked up a soft toy shaped like an owl and handed it to baby Harry. The young child giggled happily and placed the edge of the toy in his mouth, chewing on its soft ears. I stood there wondering to myself, why I hadn't already burst in and told them to evacuate, instead of watching the kid play with a toy. Thunder crashed loudly above the house, and I shrieked in shock, as a bolt of lightening followed straight after. Baby Harry started crying in fright and Lily cradled him close to her chest, as James got off the couch to have a look outside the windows. Lily had heard my feint shriek from upstairs and quickly turned around to discover where the noise had come from. Cursing myself for giving away my location, I instantly cast a 'silencio' on myself, to mute any further noise made by me or my presence. _

"_There's someone out there…" James whispered scarcely from the window, capturing Lily's attention again. The thunder crashed loudly, drowning out half the conversation between my two friends. _

"_What? No that can't be, no one can get past the war…" James cut his wife off._

"_No, no, NO!" he yelled frantically, backing away from the windows and doors. That's when I saw the hooded figure, fast approaching the small cottage. I stared in amazement as the Dark Lord strode swiftly up the garden path, and pointed his wand at their front door._

"_It can't be hi…" Lily panicked as she watched her husband flailing around for his wand._

"_Lily, take Harry and go! It's him! Go! Run! I'll hold him off!"_

"_James…" she called for him._

"_GO!" he yelled back in defeat. And that was when I realised it was too late. I had wanted to save them both, but as the scene unravelled before me, I knew it wasn't possible. Lily raced up the staircase carrying a screaming Harry in her arms. I ran ahead of her, to the furthest room down the corridor, hoping it was the room she would pick. Lily entered the child's nursery right on my heels, unaware that I was even ahead of her. She placed Harry hurriedly in his sleeping cot, and grabbed a chair from the other side of the room and wedged its frame under the door handle. I couldn't believe she had left her wand downstairs; she had no other way to protect herself or Harry. From under the invisibility cloak I quickly cast a few non-verbal spells and charms on the nursery door and room._

"_Oh God no…" Lily sobbed hysterically, as we both saw the flash of green light from the crack underneath the door. The tears flowed freely down her distraught face, as Lily crossed to the other side of the room, picking up two photo frames, a glass lamp and a pair of her own high-heeled shoes from the floor. I watched in confusion as she walked back over to Harry's cot and stood directly in front of him, as if to shield him with her body. From the far side of the nursery, I stood with my wand at the ready, and back to the window – trying extremely hard to remember the exact spell Dumbledore had asked me to complete. I could hear Lily whimpering in fright, as we stood in absolute terror of what we were about to see. The Dark Lord paused right outside the nursery door and fiddled with the brass knob impatiently, before blowing the whole piece of wood from its hinges with a 'diffindo.' Lily screamed at the explosion and then skilfully threw object after object from her arms, at the hooded figure in the doorway. With a flick of his wand, Lord Voldemort levitated all the oncoming objects and dropped them to the floor without hassle._

"_Step aside," he ordered, pointing his wand at the screaming baby in the cot. _

"_No," Lily replied firmly, taking a step further back towards her child._

"Step aside," he yelled angrily.

"_No," she replied defiantly. I risked a single glance at the raging face of Lord Voldemort, and could tell that that had been the very last of his patience. I quickly aimed my wand at Lily, and muttered the spell Dumbledore had instructed, just as the hooded figure raised his own wand…_

_Lily's piercing scream drowned out the sound of the incantation as well as the clap of thunder, which sounded directly above the cottage roof. All I could see was the blinding flash of green light, the look of disgust on the Dark Lord's face, and Lily's last attempt to reach out for Harry, before her head was thrown back with the impact of the curse. Her body dropped lifelessly to the ground in front of me. I could feel my own body shaking; I was hyperventilating, as I slowly dropped to the ground covered by the cloak, trying to string together a coherent thought. I was hoping and praying to Merlin, that Dumbledore's spell had worked, and that these deaths tonight had not been in vain._

_I choked miserably from the nursery floor; watching in horror as the Dark Lord raised his wand towards baby Harry. I couldn't understand how Dumbledore had foreseen this happening, or why I was not supposed to intervene. In my head I was thinking 'fuck this prophecy - I need to save Harry,' but I couldn't bring my body to follow through with it. The small room was thick with a deathly silence, it was eerie. I watched as the hooded figure glanced around himself in paranoia, before raising his wrist again._

"_Avada Kedavra" he projected clearly, and the bright beam of green light jolted out of his wand tip and hit Harry's forehead, bouncing off it and hitting himself square in the chest. On impact, the curse seemed to create a blinding white light; I wasn't sure what was happening, before Godric's Hollow was collapsing heavily around me…_

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_I felt as though my brain could not come up with the correct words to describe the pain I was in. I lay there silently on the nursery floor, with rubble scattered all around me. I could hear the awful sobbing and wailing of someone a little further away, but my body and head seemed to lack the will to sit up or even glance over. My head was pounding and my left knee felt like it was on fire. How had I even survived through the collapse of the cottage? Piece by piece, the events of the evening slowly came back to me; Dumbledore's meeting, Sirius' betrayal, the bizarre spell and task from my headmaster, James' death, Lily's death…Voldemort killing Harry._

_With that, I swiftly turned my head in the direction of the child's cot. I breathed out in relief as I saw baby Harry sitting solemnly in the centre of his mattress staring down at the man holding his mother. That's when I actually comprehended that Severus Snape was cradling Lily's body in his lap on the floor, crying helplessly over her death. I squinted my eyes to take a closer look at my surroundings and realised I was still covered by the invisibility cloak._

_There was nothing for me to do but, lay where I was for another ten minutes, allowing Snape to take his time and get up and leave. It was gut-wrenching listening to him cry over her; I felt the same emptiness he was feeling inside. The only sliver of hope I had was the knowledge that Dumbledore's miraculous spell would supposedly bring her back to life. Yet, I lay there pondering over the laws of magic; I knew myself, that no magic or sorcery of any form could bring back the dead. Finally Severus' wailing had ceased and he gently placed Lily's head on the carpeted floor of the nursery. I watched in amazement as he leant down and placed a kiss on her forehead and another on her forehand, as if she was royalty. After another two minutes or so, the greasy Death Eater had fled from Godric's Hollow._

"_Lily…" I called out anxiously, as I stood up steadily from the carpeted ground and threw the invisibility cloak off me at long last. My knee immediately gave way beneath me, and I cried out in agony. Looking down at my left leg, I saw that a chunk of heavy rubble had fallen on my knee and either smashed or broken it; my whole pant leg was a bloody mess. Cringing against the pain, I pulled out my wand and cast a 'brackium emendo,' on my leg. _

_Little Harry seemed bewildered to see me emerge from no where, but unafraid none the less. I spared a longing glance at Lily's stone cold form on the floor, before I walked quickly over to the child's cot and picked him up in relief. I checked for any scars or bruising on his body, other than the new bolt on his forehead. I quickly ran the pad of my thumb over it, but the baby in my arms expressed no sign of pain. I kissed him on the forehead and placed him back in his cot, which he didn't fuss about._

"_I hope this works…" I muttered to myself, drawing my wand and pointing it directly at Lily's chest. "Agape-anastasias Incantatem," I muttered the absurd spell clearly._

_But nothing happened._

_Throughout my schooling, patience had been one of my strong suits, but waiting for this stupid damn spell to take its effect on Lily, was absolute agony. After another three minutes, I had lost all but a shred of hope. I buried my face in my hands, trying desperately to fight back the pain and horror of my two friends' deaths. Knowing that I was the reason for both their losses, when I could have saved them all – had I only evacuated them from the cottage, instead of executing Dumbledore's flawed master plan. I couldn't even say I felt like a failure, because the emotions swirling around within me were certainly more unbearable than that. It was in that moment, out of no where, that Harry began to scream and cry unhappily. _

_I raised my wand in alarm, ready to stun any Death Eaters on the premises or attackers that were harming Harry. But the silence around the property remained; Harry and I were the only living beings within the property's radius. I walked over to his cot and picked him up again, rubbing his back and trying to locate the source of his discomfort. I had absolutely no luck with kids, especially babies. James' son continued crying as if he'd broken a bone or could literally see a ghost in the room. I was at a lost; I had no idea what to do, until I noticed Lily's arm moving beside her body on the floor. Then everything Dumbledore had said to me came flooding back. I quickly placed Harry back in his cot and tucked him under his blankets, and then 'accioed' Lily's wand from downstairs. I ran over to Lily and checked her pulse at her neck happily._

_"Lily…" I called encouragingly, knowing that if the spell had actually worked, we had to get as far away from Harry immediately. "Lily, please come on get up!" I prodded again and was thrilled when she finally opened her eyes. At first she was confused and scared, but the second I helped her to her feet, she saw Harry in his cot and she sighed. That was until her memories came crashing down on her and she noticed the state of the nursery and the fact that her son was screaming and crying as if he was in serious pain. She made an attempt to lunge for the baby cot, but I caught her around the waist quickly. In a matter of seconds I had 'accioed' the invisibility cloak, grabbed hold of Lily's arms and Apparated us safely back into Dumbledore's office, leaving the painful screams of her son behind us. The second we landed in the familiar office, Lily flung herself out of my grasp and began yelling;_

"_Harry is still IN THERE! We have to GO BACK," not realising she and I were in the presence of others._

_"YOU!" I yelled, catching sight of Sirius on the other side of Dumbledore's office. _

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A/N: **Please review guys!** Sorry again for keeping you guys waiting a few months for that. But that was _Chapter Twelve; _how did you like it? Thoughts and comments? Do you think it was right for Remus to simply follow Dumbledore's grand plan? Do the ends justify the means in this situation? Let me know where you think this plot is heading and I hope it wasn't too intense for some of you either. xx


	13. Obscured Visions

_A/N:_ This is what I would have liked to happen; – had J.K. Rowling's world ever crossed over with Stephanie Meyers'.

Disclaimer: I do not own anything from their creations, besides the following plot. xx

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**Chapter Thirteen – Obscured Visions**

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_**24 June 1995**_

_**Emmet Cullen POV**_

It had been a dull nine months since our move from Forks last September. It would be a complete understatement, for me to say that I missed the miserable rainy fishing town. In a weird way, I had been fond of the town; the high school and even the damn treaty we had shared with the hormonal teenage werewolf pack. The problem was; I wasn't the only one. As far as I could tell, everyone was missing Forks, and more than anything, we were all missing Bella. That was everyone, except for Rose.

Upon arriving here in New York, Carlisle had been able to easily secure a job in the local hospital of Ithaca and Esme had spent her time restoring our old family home. Alice had continued to invest the family fortune in designer clothes, and had spent some time researching a few disputed details regarding her past. Jasper had been the only one of us to enrol in an academic institute to further his interest in philosophy, but if anything it was merely to distract him from his guilt of attacking Bella last year. To everyone's surprise, Rosalie had secured herself a full-time job as a receptionist for a legal firm in the city and continued to enjoy the social perks of mingling with a multitude of wealthy men. She had happily broken up with my sorry arse a few months after our move from Forks.

"Do you ever stop playing that stupid thing," she snapped sarcastically at me, as I scored another goal in FIFA. The first thing I managed to do after our break up was install an XBOX 360 in the games room of our family residence. On the weekends when Jasper wasn't at university, he and I would spend most of our time up here. The games room was awesome; it had everything from a pool table, reclining couches, an alcoholic bar and surround-sound system, to a car-racing track, a fifty inch plasma screen and of course the multi-control XBOX.

"Oh shut up Rose; just cause you don't like the game," Alice snapped back at her, as she entered the games room and sat down gracefully on the couch beside Jasper. My pixie like sister kissed her boyfriend tenderly on the neck and distracted him from defending another goal I was shooting.

"YES!" I laughed back at Jasper's complaints and protests as Alice winked happily at me.

"Oi! You lot; it's a Saturday morning! What happened to family time downstairs on weekends?" Esme trampled into the games room and had a go at us. Shortly after we arrived in New York, we had all agreed that we would make more of an effort to spend time together as a coven or 'family' as Esme referred to us. The whole thing was her attempt at cheering us up after the move, and trying to maintain the peace in the house. The day we had all arrived in Ithaca, New York, Edward announced that he wasn't remaining with us, but heading off to travel around the world and clear his head. We all knew his breakup with Bella had been painful but we hadn't been expecting him to simply up-and-leave. Jasper had spiralled into a downhill twist of guilt and self-loathing for causing the breakup and move from Forks, and soon enough Rose had broken things off with me. Carlisle was continually at the hospital as he had accepted a specialist's position and was always on call and lastly Alice had had a few issues with Jasper, when she had started tracking down some of the more frightening details from her past, against his will. So naturally, Esme was holding onto a few pieces of string in trying to keep the family together. After a serious conversation between us all, excluding Edward, we had all promised to make time for the family and to try and keep the peace.

"You're getting pretty good at FIFA Esme," Alice quickly piped up and argued that Carlisle was at work again and that we were all happily playing on the XBOX. She then cleverly asked Esme to play with us, and handed our step mother the remaining multi-player controller.

"Sit your butt back down Rose!" Esme snapped at Rosalie, the moment she tried to leave the games room. Jasper, Alice and I all smirked at each other, as we used our own controllers to start up a new match.

"You wouldn't make Edward sit through this," she whined irritably at Esme.

"Yeah well, Edward's not here," Jasper tried to shut her up quickly.

"And whose fault is that?" Rosalie spat back at him. Almost instantly, everyone in the room felt the effects of Jasper's guilt and pain. Wave after wave of torment and emotion consumed each of us, as Jasper began to relive the night of Bella's 18th birthday back in Forks.

"Enough Jazz," Alice soothed desperately, rubbing her boyfriend's arms and shoulders. Esme too, moved over on the couch and began to rub Jasper's back, as she squeezed her eyes shut against the self-loathe and guilt he was broadcasting on everyone.

"Come on mate, bring it together," I encouraged my brother hopefully, as I threw daggers at Rose with my eyes. It was in moments like these, that I absolutely hated that woman. I was glad she had broken up with me, because when things like this happened – I didn't have to stand up for her spiteful little arse.

"Apologise Rose!" Esme ordered across the games room, disappointed with her step daughter.

"You're not my mother!" she spat back angrily. Everyone looked up momentarily, to catch the pain and hurt on Esme's face. None of us had been expecting it; the comment had been so out of the blue and completely uncalled for as well. Things had been increasingly tense between all of us these past few months, but none of us had actually snapped to the point where we could wound or hurt each other past repair. The pained expression on Esme's face was a sight that each of us would not be able to forget, for as long as we all lived. Had Carlisle been home or witnessed Rosalie's comment, he would have kicked her out of his house and told her to find a new coven.

"I didn't mean it like that…" Rosalie tried to back track immediately, but Esme had already dropped her gaze to the floor and continued to stroke Jasper's back. None of us had realised, but Jasper's emotional broadcast had shifted from his own guilt and self-loathing, to a pity and sadness for Esme. We were all feeling its effects too.

"Save it Rose," I replied sourly to her, prompting her to jump off the couch and leave the games room.

"What's going on in here?" Carlisle walked into the room in a timely fashion, colliding with Rosalie. The hospital had obviously dismissed him early for the afternoon. He raised his eyebrow at all of us, questioning the reason behind the depressing mood, Rosalie's attitude and why Alice and Esme were comforting Jasper. He looked over at me for some kind of indication.

"Don't ask…" I responded dismally, shrugging it off and hoping Jasper would cheer up quickly.

"ROSE! Get back in here…" Carlisle bellowed impatiently. We all listened quietly as we heard the front door slam and then heard the swoosh of Rosalie's speedy departure from the vicinity.

"Leave it be Carlisle," Esme soothed, trying to change the topic completely. The rest of us in the room remained quiet. Alice and I hastily began a two-player match of soccer on the XBOX, and allowed Esme and Jasper to recompose themselves. The match was rather short-lived as I whooped my little sister's butt in no time at all. Carlisle then struck up a conversation about the happenings in Rome with the Volturi. It didn't exactly surprise any of us that Aro had recruited a few more gifted members to his guard.

"Sometimes it seems like they're preparing for a war of some sort," Esme remarked, dismissing the Volturi's dealings and picking up a controller, indicating she wanted to participate in the next match. Jasper quickly offered his controller to Carlisle out of politeness, who rejected it, and then logged in with Esme, to the next multi-player match. Carlisle happily took a seat on one of the remaining couches, settling in to watch the heated watching a full match between the four of us, Carlisle opened up the daily newspaper and disappeared behind it as we began our next match. He had taken to reading the business columns in the local newspaper and keeping up to date with what was happening in the corporate world of New York.

"Anything interesting today Carlisle?" Jasper asked half heartedly, trying to engage him in conversation.

"Just reading The Wall Street Journal," he responded, aware that none of us really wanted to hear it anyway. Our soccer match continued on for another half hour before Esme became bored with it, we asked Carlisle to suggest something for us all to do while we finished off the end of the match.

"Oi Pixie, you've got the ball," I called out to my team mate, wondering why she wasn't passing it back towards me or trying to score a goal. We all glanced over at Alice when she didn't respond. Her eyes were glazed over and she was sitting extremely still.

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_Back in the town of Forks, Chief Swan walks into his house and catches Bella making out with Jacob Black on the couch, but doesn't seem bothered by it. Charlie's sister; Lily convinces him to allow Bella to go camping with the boys from La Push. Lily, Charlie and Bella sit with an old man with a long white beard discussing something in Charlie's living room. Bella is cautiously walking around an elaborate castle. The man with the white beard is sitting behind a desk, yelling at Bella in what appears to be his office. Jacob and Bella are under a tree kissing each other and... Bella is crying and running down a corridor in the same elaborate castle, with Lily and another boy chasing after her. Lily pushes Bella to stand behind her, and raises a wooden stick to presumably protect them both._

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"What is it sweetheart?" Carlisle asked softly, kneeling down on the carpet before Alice, holding out a glass of water for her. The petite little pixie took a few deep breaths of air, before reaching out and accepting the glass from Carlisle. Jasper sat patiently beside his girlfriend, holding her hand reassuringly. Whenever Alice had had visions of the future in the past, Edward had always been around to convey or clarify anything for us. Since his disappearance, we had managed on our own, but it took so much more time; calming Alice down, giving her time to breathe and then asking her frame by frame, what she actually saw.

"Does sorcery actually exist Carlisle?" she asked quietly. We all scrunched up our eyebrows in confusion, waiting on his reply.

"It does…" he replied immediately, and then asked cautiously, "but what did you see Alice?"

Jasper rubbed her back, as Alice placed both her hands on either side of her face and carefully began to retell us what she had seen in her vision. I could tell by the incredulous looks on everyone else's faces that they had not been expecting Bella to move on as quickly as she had with Jacob Black. Though if anything, we were all stunned by the visions of dangerous sorcery, warlocks flying around on broomsticks, a castle which was supposed to be a magical school and the fact that Bella and her aunty; Lily, were some how central to these visions.

"That mutt was making it so difficult to see anything," Alice snapped angrily. "Everything was so disjointed, and I could barely make sense of anything I saw where he was near her."

"Forget the dog for now; what the hell is Bella doing getting involved with sorcery?" I queried uncertainly.

"Carlisle?" Esme looked over at her husband for some kind of explanation. He sighed heavily, and disappeared into his study for a few moments. We all sat anxiously, wondering what he was doing. He eventually returned into the games room, holding a few pieces of paper.

"Is this the old man with the beard that you saw Alice?" he took a seat next to the pixie on the couch and handed her a clipping of an old man with a long white beard. Esme and I got up and went and stood behind their couch so we could catch a glimpse of the man in question.

"Yes that's him," she confirmed immediately. "Who is he?"

"His name's Albus Dumbledore; he's the Headmaster at a British boarding school in Scotland for teenage witches and wizards from surrounding areas. He's been appearing on and off my radar for at least the past century or so. This is the school," Carlisle handed a picture of an enormous, magnificent castle to Alice.

"Yes that's the same castle I saw in Bella's future," she confirmed confidently.

"During my time with the Volturi, I was privileged enough to actually visit this school and meet with the Headmaster at the time; Professor Amrose Swott, I think his name was. Aro had some business dealings with the school and the professor, and I had merely tagged along for the ride. Actually, Caius, Marcus and I were asked to roam around and explore the castle during the course of their meeting," Carlisle explained evenly.

"And what of this new Headmaster Dumbledore?" Jasper questioned.

"That's a more complicated tale," he paused, contemplating where to begin.

Carlisle explained to us, that his first encounter with Albus Dumbledore had been in 1945, in which he had witnessed a wizarding duel between the old bearded man and one of Dumbledore's past friends; Gellert Grindelwald. Apparently Carlisle and a few of his old vampire companions from over the centuries, had heard about an army of magical and mythical creatures that was forming throughout Europe. For four decades Carlisle had shrugged it off, showing no interest in joining the magical revolution, or part taking in their rise to power. But when some of his old friends got caught up in the army, Carlisle flew out to Europe to find out what exactly, had them so captivated. From what he could tell when he found his friends, and the hundreds of others that had shown interest in the revolution; - was that, half of them seemed to be magically bewitched into doing exactly as they were told, (Imperius Curse.) Carlisle explained that he was appalled at what he had seen, and was scared for his friends and many of the others in the army. They were all walking around mindlessly, claiming to be 'followers of Grindelwald' without really knowing what it was they were going to be fighting for. Luckily, within days of Carlisle's arrival in Europe, a raging wizarding duel between Grindelwald and his childhood friend ensued; resulting in Dumbledore imprisoning the dark sorcerer, disbanding the army and releasing all the vampires, wizards, werewolves and other mythical creatures from the magical charm Grindelwald had had them under, to follow his orders.

After what Carlisle had seen in Europe, he decided to keep a closer eye on the wizarding world. He had tried to stay in contact with some of the wizards he had met during his few days on the Continent, but none of the wizarding folk from the revolution seemed to want anything to do with anyone they had met from Grindelwald's army.

He then went on to explain that during the late 1960's; Carlisle had been called out to London by an old vampire ally, regarding a medical emergency. Upon his arrival in the busy city, Carlisle had learned that his old friends had bitten a young child they found, and changed the boy into a vampire; which was forbidden by the Volturi. The young child in question had actually been born to a wizarding couple and was already enrolled at the magical boarding school for his third academic year. At thirteen years of age, he was old and mature enough to stand up for what he wanted; which was to return to school with his friends, regardless of his new immortal nature. Carlisle had been contacted by his old friends, so that he could provide support to them as well as to determine whether there was actually any 'magical blood' left in the boy, and if practising magic was still possible for him. Unknown to Carlisle or his friends, the boy had written a letter to his school Headmaster, begging for his assistance. Dumbledore had turned up on their doorstep within hours and Carlisle had actually managed to meet him personally.

"So was the boy able to return to this school?" Alice asked, raising the photo of the castle in her hand briefly.

"No. Unfortunately Professor Dumbledore informed the child that due to his new nature, it would not be safe for the other students if he returned to the school. He did however, offer the boy personalised home schooling in the magical art, by a retired professor from the school."

"Seems reasonable…" I commented lightly.

"Yes Albus Dumbledore did seem like a reasonable individual," Carlisle nodded his head once in approval. "Since meeting him in the 'sixties, I continued to keep track of his actions and footsteps through Europe. I stayed in contact with my friend's new magical-vampire son, who happily kept me informed of some of the happenings in the wizarding world."

"Bella's future is obviously entwined with this man, his school and magic in general; along with her Aunt Lily's as well," Esme offered.

"Along with that mutt's," Alice added sourly.

"Alright so the big question is; do we call Edward now?" Jasper concluded and we all looked around the room at each other in consideration.

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A/N:** I really hope you all REVIEW GUYS!** That was _Chapter Thirteen_ and it was also the introduction of our favourite vampires from Forks. I've just given you all a brief look into the future of this story. I really had no intention of giving away so much in this chapter, but I hope it makes up for not updating these last few months. How do you all feel about Bella being at Hogwarts? Please review and hit favourite/follow ;) xx


	14. The Headmaster's Office Once More

_A/N:_ This is what I would have liked to happen; – had J.K. Rowling's world ever crossed over with Stephanie Meyers'.

_Disclaimer:_ I do not own anything from their creations, besides the following plot. xx

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**Chapter Fourteen – The Headmaster's Office Once More**

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_**25 June 1995**_

_**Lily Potter POV**_

"Severus what are you doing here?" I gasped in shock. Remus released me from his arms and pushed me to stand behind him absently. Within a second or so, I had managed to glance repeatedly between the two males, quickly recalling the most previous encounter between us all. From the expressions on each of their faces, it was obvious neither of the two, had moved past it either. Standing closely behind Remus, I placed a soothing palm on his lower back, in hope that he would straighten up from his territorial crouch. This gesture did not go unnoticed by the Potions master, as I observed his dark eyes narrow into cool slits. At the touch of my hand, Remus slowly stepped back, his gaze fixed pointedly on Severus' face.

As if on cue, the Caterwauling Charm I had cast an hour earlier began to screech throughout the apartment; deafening us momentarily, with its unmistakeable high-pitched scream. Severus rolled his eyes at the lateness of the intruder charm, as Remus and I grimaced, grasping quickly at our ears and squinting our eyes against the painful noise. After a few moments of peering at each other in bewilderment, I realised Severus and Remus were waiting on me to cast the countercharm. I raised my wand swiftly and muttered the incantation, hoping it was the right one. It must have been, as the internal alarm ceased within my home and Snape took a few alarming leaps towards us in the centre of the living room.

"What are you…?" I began, before noticing the dark expression on his face.

"_Stupefy,_" Remus yelled defensively at the oncoming man, also noticing the coolness behind his eyes. The jet of red light flew across my living room, leaving me horrified and speechless. Severus blocked the stunning charm skilfully and disarmed Remus, catching the second wand in his left hand. I had not been expecting the attack from Remus; however, the intrusive demeanour of my childhood friend and former Death Eater was what stunned me the most. I quickly stiffened, feeling the colour drain from my flushed face, as a wave of panic rushed through me. I was frightened of the intruder before us; as I had no clue why he was in my apartment or what he wanted.

"Severus..?" I tried to gauge his intentions by calling out his name shakily. This did not receive a response from the black clad man billowing towards us. Remus reached out for my wand, but I managed to jerk it away from his grasp and stutter out a charm desperately, "C-con-confundo," I yelled desperately, hoping my memory was serving me well and that the incantation for the confusion charm was correct. Severus Snape blocked my attack without blinking, continuing his stride towards us. I froze, staring at his cold eyes and the dark circles beneath them. _Why hadn't he greeted us; why hadn't he said anything at all?_ It was so hard not to panic; as my lack of practice with magic had left my fears and insecurities taking over my mobility and reflexes. Again, Remus reached out quickly for my wand, but I was swift enough to come up with another charm.

"_IMMOBULUS_," I screamed, frightened of the sinister expression on Severus' face, and the black pools in his eyes. He did not seem like the man I had spoken to the previous year, nor did he seem like the man that had appeared in few of my dreams. For a fleeting moment, it occurred to me that he had switched allegiance again, and may have contributed to the Dark Lord's resurrection. The thought left me feeling nauseous, and I prayed against all odds, that I was wrong. I gaped incredulously, as Snape managed to throw up a 'Protego' shield before I had even finished screaming out my freezing charm. To add to the chaos, I struggled against Remus, as he continued to shove me behind him, hoping he could create a physical buffer between me and the intruder in my home.

"Enough of this," Snape snarled angrily, though he had seemed more desperate than anything else. As soon as he had reached us in the centre of the living room, he clenched his fist firmly around my forearm. In the heat of things, I barely noticed the electric shock that zapped us from the direct contact of our skin. Severus pulled me away from Remus' grasp and began to turn on the spot. There was a swirl of wind, a familiar sickening sensation in my stomach and then a burning ache above my wrist. Severus and I landed on the carpeted floor of Dumbledore's Office.

"Let go of me," I snapped at him. His firm grip had me wincing in pain and then rubbing my forearm, the moment he had released me from his hold. It took me another second to gather my bearings, and back myself into a far corner of the abandoned office, away from him. Glancing around the old circular room, I quickly became unsettled by the fact; I was alone with a man I did not trust, in a place which I had not set foot in for years; and that my primary source of security and comfort, had been left behind –wandless– in my apartment.

"Where is everyone?" I panicked hysterically, "_Why did you bring me here?_ Where's Dumbledore? Remus will figure out where you've brought me!" my voice rose rapidly, as my outburst failed to receive an answer or any sign of acknowledgement from the other individual in the room.

Severus raised his wand and I flinched instinctively. This obviously amused the professor, as he rolled his eyes at my reaction to him. The grand antique clock behind me chimed twice, signalling the early hours of the morning. Closing my eyes briefly, I wondered whether the whole evening had been an absurd nightmare; and whether I had simply fallen asleep on the couch watching 'Peter Pan' with Bella.

I peered up hopefully from under my eyelashes, and was disheartened by the peculiar look on Severus' face in front of me. My heart sank, and the nausea came flooding back; the Dark Lord had been resurrected and my son's life was in danger. Severus slowly stretched his wand arm again and conjured a chair in the centre of the room, which I presumed was for me. He then promptly summoned one of Hogwarts' house elves and told the creature to inform the Headmaster he had returned. I ignored the chair intended for me, and watched him incredulously from my secure corner, as he walked around the back of the office desk, and began shuffling through objects in all the desk drawers. This amazed me; Severus Snape was going through Professor Dumbledore's belongings, as if it were a normal occurrence. He glanced up at me a few times; and I wasn't sure whether it was to check if I was still there, or to see if I had combusted with fright or shock. After another few minutes of standing quietly in the corner, I had come to the realisation, that Snape was not out to harm me. This however, did not relieve much of my anxiety or discomfort.

There was no sign of anyone else around and the castle was eerily quiet. I strained my ears to pick up any noise from beyond the stone walls, but couldn't hear any indications of fellow beings on the premises either. The only other source of life in the vicinity, other than Severus and myself; was Fawkes – the magnificent scarlet bird, perched quietly in the corner of the office. She tilted her head with interest, eyeing me with her own poise and beauty. The fact that she wasn't disturbed or unsettled by the former Death Eater's presence, served as the slightest reassurance to me – as I would have jumped out the tower window, had she indicated otherwise. I blinked twice and smiled out of admiration, and she reciprocated my gesture by bowing her head back in reverence. I wasn't sure if she knew who I was, or even remembered me, as it had been dark times when I had last seen her. Upon forming the Order, Professor Dumbledore had insisted on having Fawkes present at our meetings as a symbol of hope and inspiration. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Severus glance up and catch my exchange with the young bird and sneer with distaste.

During my school years I felt safe and secure within the vast castle, however standing within its walls once again, I was beginning to feel lost and uncertain. In all seriousness, I was spooked about being here again. I shivered involuntarily at the thought and received a frown from Severus across the room. He raised his wand arm, and pointed it at the ornate fireplace on the other side of the Headmaster's Office. A glorious crackling fire began to burn and light up the room; I stared at it in wonder as he continued shuffling through Dumbledore's desk. I had thoroughly missed magic.

That was when I remembered my wand was still clenched tightly in my hand by my side. I began to raise it slowly, just to check if it was still there and that my imagination wasn't actually playing tricks on me. A second later, Severus ceased his rummaging, looked up and threw me a stern glare, before diving back into the drawers. I hurriedly lowered my right arm again, and began studying the office I was standing in.

Dumbledore's Office was much the same as it had been the last time I had visited. I pushed away the memories of that horrendous night, and glanced up curiously at all the portraits of the school's previous headmasters and headmistresses. It seemed they were all very much awake, and fascinated by my presence in the room. Everywhere I looked around the dark circular space; their eyes were fixed curiously on my figure. It was slightly unsettling, watching them as they watched me. After another few minutes or so, the uneasiness slowly began to drain from my body and my mind started to reel. I soon remembered that I was finally back in the Wizarding World after fourteen years of hiding and abstinence from magic.

"Sorry for the lack of formalities earlier…" Severus began out of no where and trailed off with his own thoughts. He studied me for a few moments before returning to his task at the Headmaster's desk. I gaped silently at the man, now shuffling through scrolls of parchment on the desk. It took me a few extra minutes to finally find my voice.

"You could've just said you wanted to bring me here…Remus too…" I murmured back in annoyance, recalling his frightening demeanour as he entered my apartment and the subsequent duel that had resulted. Snape sneered at the mention of the other man.

"I wasn't thinking," he responded swiftly, lifting his eyes briefly to watch me walk across the carpeted office and stand directly in front of the warm fireplace. I was aware that every other pair of eyes on the curved walls had also followed my figure across the room as well. I stretched out my arms, to warm my hands against the scorching flames. It surprised me that he seemed to be in a talkative mood; so I decided to push my luck and gather as much information off him.

"Har…"

"He's fine; Dumbledore is with him now," Severus muttered without looking up.

"And Sir…?"

"Should be on his way," Severus replied, cutting me off.

"What about The Minis…"

"We're unsure on their position at the moment." He was obviously not in the mood to converse with me, so I stood quietly and watched him toss over the Headmaster's desk, still searching for something desperately.

"What are y…?"

"It's none of your damn business, geez you and your million questions Evans! Do you ever stop?" Severus yelled out in frustration. I gaped blankly at him, unsure what to do with myself. Peeking up nervously at some of the portraits on the surrounding walls, I noticed few of the faces were shaking their heads with disapproving expressions. I hung my head in shame and embarrassment, and turned my back on the office and Severus, as he continued with his search. There was no other way to describe the feeling deep in my stomach, other than that of fear and isolation. I had no idea what I was doing back within the castle walls, and I was eagerly anticipating the arrival of another familiar face; - who could tell me everything would be alright. I was anxious about my son's well being and longed for the sanctuary and comfort of Remus' protective arms. The tension between Severus and I was absolutely unbearable, and I felt as if it could have gradually suffocated me, had the office door not burst open behind me, minutes later.

"_Lily,"_ I spun around instantly, to be enveloped by the crushing embrace of Sirius Black. His arms had woven around my middle and locked securely around my back before I had even seen his ageing face. Yet, without a doubt; I knew it was him. I could tell by his distinct scent of stale tobacco mixed with his soap; I could tell by the fierce, desperate way in which he held me, and mostly by the fact that the bitter feeling of longing had finally evaporated from deep within my stomach.

"Sirius…" I gasped, and melted quickly into his strong arms as I felt my world spin back into focus within seconds. This was real; every bit of tonight was real. I struggled to return his bear-like embrace, as he gently lowered me to the floor again. Sirius was stroking my hair and kissing my temple and forehead, before I had realised I was crying hysterically into his neck, clutching onto him for dear life. Between my sobbing, and his whispering of unintelligible nonsense to soothe me, we hadn't noticed the room around us fill up with stunned faces. Nothing else seemed to matter for a few moments; other than knowing Sirius was safe and well, and back by my side. I hugged him tightly and he closed his eyes and rocked me back and forth again and again, before kissing my cheek for the tenth time. All too soon, Sirius pulled away, holding me out at arms length. We gazed fondly at each other, and I quickly took in all his matured features, not missing the pool of tears welling up in his soft eyes.

"Hi," I laughed lightly, hiccuping as I wiped away the tears streaming down my cheeks.

"Hi," he chuckled, reaching up and whisking more of the tears away from my eyes, with the pad of his thumb. "It's been too long Lils," he rubbed my upper arms happily.

"It has…" I paused, noticing the number of people who had poured into the Headmaster's office within the previous few moments.

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_A/N:_ Hey guys, I'm so sorry for the lack of updating lately. These next few chapters have been difficult to write, but I hope you all enjoyed that one. The story will start to move quite rapidly from here. I'm keen to hear some of your thoughts on the new twist in the plot. Lily is finally back in the Wizarding World, so let me know what you're all thinking, **please review guys! **xx


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